The In Between Series 8 - And Now For the Rest of The Story
by NeedtoKnow
Summary: Continuation of a Series of stories that fit "In Between" episodes that were aired so that things can be better explained/explored. This story is set in between "Saved By the Bells." and "Sudden Death". How was it Possible that Lee went from facing Treason Charges to just being sent on another assignment? Here's the rest of the story that wasn't aired. COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1 - An Offer He Couldn't Refuse

**Disclaimer - "Scarecrow and Mrs. King" are copyrighted to Warner Brothers and Shoot the Moon Productions. This story is for entertainment only. I will not make any money off it but do hope that at least some people will enjoy it. The Characters are not mine; I only took them out to play with them for a while so they could help me tell the story. All the credit goes to Bruce and Kate and their wonderful supporting staff for portraying these wonderful characters so well that so many of us still love them so much today. The additional characters and this story are mine.**

 **A/N #1 – For those who are familiar with my In Between Series, you know that I accomplish two things with them. First, I try to fill in all the holes that were missing from the aired version. Then Amanda and Lee help me tell what happened in between the aired episodes. Since I meld them into the series like they really were aired (because we know that Amanda and Lee are real so the stories really do exist), I will be using references from them in future stories. I don't think you need to read each of the stories in order to understand the story being told but hopefully you will read all of them anyway. Thanks again for all your support.**

 **Chapter 1 - An Offer He Couldn't Refuse**

It was Saturday and Lee had the day off. He had decided that he was going to invite Penny from the Steno Pool out dancing at his favorite nightclub and then he planned to bring her back to his place for a little companionship. She had been begging him for weeks to take her out and it was high time he took her up on that offer. As he was thinking about it, the phone rang.

"Yeah" He answered.

"Stetson, this is Agent Reinhardt. I think we have some news that you would be interested in."

"Go ahead." Lee said

"Well I'm sure you know the name of Rostov?"

"Who doesn't? What about him."

"Well I know that you were in charge of the last operation to try to bring him in and at the last minute he was tipped off and you lost him."

"Yes, we never did find out how he got word that we knew he would be at the Governor's mansion that day. I have come so close to nearly catching him so many times that I can't believe what good luck the man seems to have. It is almost like he is a Chameleon. What does this have to do with anything?"

"Well Scarecrow, how would you like another crack at him?"

"Really? How?"

"Well I'm part of a special forces team that has been trying to get him for months. The head of the team is Agent Brewer. We have been running a secret operation together and just as we were ready to close in, Brewer became extremely sick and went to the Hospital ER where they discovered that his appendix had burst. He's okay but it will be a long time before he will be of any use to us and if we don't follow through on our operation, all our work for the past 5 months is down the drain. We know how long you have been trying to get Rostov and thought you might like first stab at taking Brewer's place."

"Okay, you have my attention. Tell me more." Lee said getting excited at the prospect.

"There is a college in Virginia called Green Briar College."

"Yeah, I've heard of it. Isn't that a Catholic School?"

"That's the one. Well about 5 months ago, we arranged for Professor Daly to go to work there. Professor Daly has been working in the Government in the weapons department for many years and has developed a specialized Missile that can zone in on its target from hundreds of miles away."

"Okay, so I'm not sure I'm following. How does that get us Rostov?"

"Well we made sure that Moscow was aware of this missile being developed and made it seem like Professor Daly had gotten burnt out while creating it so he decided to go back to his first love; teaching. Then we leaked out that he was using the school as a cover to finish the project and that the school was so eager to get him as a teacher that they made a deal with him. They would allow him to use their labs and materials to continue his work with these new test missiles while he taught physics and chemistry to the students."

"Which means the documents would be in his classroom." Lee finally understood.

"Exactly! Our sources have determined that now that Professor Daly has announced that his work is complete and he will be revealing it next week, Rostov will be making his move. We made sure that he thinks that the plans will be moved to a more secure location on Tuesday after the computer is demonstrated to a group of important government and military people so he should be infiltrating the Campus on Monday. Are you up to busting the leader of the most successful Espionage ring in the country?"

Lee smiled as he answered "I am definitely in for that. Where do we start?"

"Can you meet me at the Agency in an hour? I can fill you in on all the details."

"Sure, I'll be there." All thoughts of a night out with Penny were forgotten.

 **A/N - I'm using Green Briar College because that is where the original says that this took place. However, interesting enough, Green Briar is an all girl school, not coed. There were definitely guys in the aired episode so I'm just going to ignore that it should have been all girls.**

 **TBC**


	2. Chapter 2 - You Will Be a Janitor

**Chapter 2 - You Will Be a Janitor**

Lee met Agent Reinhardt at the agency at 11am. Since it was Saturday, there weren't very many people there but Lee suggested they use a conference room to make sure everything was kept confidential.

"So what is the plan?" Lee asked as he drew the blinds.

"We believe that Rostov will come in through the North entrance and gain access to the building with a fake id. Professor Daly's office is on the third floor so we have decided to make sure the elevator is not working on Monday. It will force him to go up the stairs. Meanwhile, we can have you posing as a janitor just below this area so you can nab him as he is coming out with the evidence."

"Is there any other way in or out?"

"Not really unless he can fly out the window. We will have a lot of agents surrounding the building though so if he does try to come out the window, he won't get far."

"Does Billy know anything about this?" Lee asked wondering why Billy hadn't told him.

"No, I'm afraid not. This sting was set up by Blue Leader and it has been closely guarded after the last few failed attempts. We decided not to bring in anyone who wasn't directly involved in the operation."

"Okay, so who does know?"

"No one you really know Lee. They are mostly agents from other departments. We really worked hard on this. Can we count on you to help out?"

"Yes, you can count on it! I've waited a long time for this day. Who's my backup?"

"Oh a lovely lady who looks young enough to be a coed. Her name is Dawn Simons and she has been with the agency for a couple of years. She's still getting her feet wet but like I said, there will be a lot of agents around the building and inside on the main floor too. We don't intend to let Rostov get away this time."

"That sounds good to me."

"We have alerted the college and they have given us what we need to make you look like one of their janitors. We have this neat new device that we can implant into the handle of a mop so that you can communicate. It will just look like you are goofing around and singing into your mop handle."

"Wow, did Leatherneck create that?"

"No, not this time. He was busy with something Billy has him working on. We used one of his best men though so it should work." Agent Reinhardt handed Lee a uniform along with the piece to put onto the mop and a blueprint of the school. He showed him how the piece fit onto the mop handle and how it worked.

"Okay, that should do it. We'll have a janitor's van ready for you early Monday morning. I'll meet you in the agency parking lot at 6am."

"That sounds great. Thanks for including me. You have no idea what this means to me if I am the one who gets to bring this scum in." Lee said.

"I know Lee. If anyone deserves to make this bust, it is you. So go enjoy the rest of your weekend and I'll see you Monday."

Lee headed back to his apartment. It was still early in the afternoon but he poured himself a tumbler of scotch and added some ice. After staring out the window for a few minutes, he decided to get comfortable and find a movie on TV. Over the years, Lee had been responsible for getting a lot of bad people off the streets but this man was one of the worse. He was a highly honored Moscow Operative who had been responsible for plenty of US Military deaths due to being able to obtain so many classified documents that ended up putting soldiers in danger. Plus he had stolen blueprints of new weapons and other military secrets that allowed Moscow to know way too much about the US military. No, this man needed to be stopped and they just might be able to do it this time. Lee spent the rest of the day watching old movies and fell asleep on his couch. When he awoke on Sunday morning, he forced himself to do laundry and catch up on some chores. He looked around his apartment and thought about cleaning it but he was just too excited. Living alone had its advantages including no one to complain about how messy his apartment was. In the end, he decided to go to the gym and work off some of his anxiety. He had the membership at the University Athletic Club and he didn't use it nearly enough.

After a good 2 hour workout, Lee was back at his apartment feeling a little less stressed. He always found that a good workout helped his stress level. He had spent the afternoon driving around the DC area because it helped him to relax. He thought about driving to Arlington but decided against it. He had been showing up at Amanda's a little too much since he almost lost her during the whole James Delano case and he didn't want her to think that there was anything going on; because of course, there wasn't. As the night crept in, Lee headed back to his apartment. He settled his nerves with a glass of Scotch and then headed to bed early.

Hopefully tomorrow would be his lucky day.

 **TBC**


	3. Chapter 3 - Best Laid Plans

**Chapter 3 - Best Laid Plans**

It had all gone as planned. Rostov had shown up, taken photos of the fake documents that they had planted and Lee had figured out that he was posing as a Nun to escape. After a short scuffle, Lee had Rostov in custody. Rostov went quietly with Lee, almost too quietly but Lee had his man. When he reached the agency, he discovered that word had already been sent to his department about Rostov being captured and that Lee was ultimately responsible for the actual arrest. As Lee entered the bullpen, his fellow agents began clapping him on the back and congratulating him. Once again Scarecrow had shown that he was a little better than everyone else. Francine had made a quick run to the market and purchased several bottles of Champagne so when Lee arrived, they were able to toast to such a great success. This arrest was probably one of the most important ones of Lee's career and definitely a huge success for the department. Everyone was in such a great mood that Lee decided that today was the day he was going to ask for his vacation.

When Billy brought Lee into his office to find out what had actually gone on and why he wasn't informed, Lee told him he wanted time off to go to Bermuda. Billy wasn't amused and he definitely couldn't afford for Lee to be gone for 2 weeks. In the end after Lee explained how the whole Rostov thing had happened, Billy decided to let Lee have a week off as a reward for achieving one of his highest goals. "But just one week Lee! I expect you to be back at your desk on Tuesday, understand?" Billy said.

"Billy you are the best. I won't forget this. Okay, well I have to go make some airline reservations. I really do think that you should let Francine take my place while I'm gone" Lee said with a smile and wink as he walked out of Billy's office.

Lee stopped at a Travel agency on the way home and quickly got a flight booked for that afternoon. He reserved a beautiful beachfront room in Bermuda so he could sit on his balcony and see all the beautiful women walk by him. He couldn't wait. As he was driving back to his apartment, he began thinking about what he needed to do to get ready. Then it hit him, who was going to feed his fish? His fish had been a part of his life for a long time and he couldn't leave them for a week without someone taking care of them. Who in the world did he know that would be willing to come to his Apartment and feed his fish? Francine? The thought made him laugh out loud. She would probably dump the whole can of fish food at one time in and tell them to make due for the week. No, definitely not Francine! Then it hit him, the only person he knew that he could trust was of course; Amanda.

 **TBC**


	4. Chapter 4 - Scarecrow

**Chapter 4 - Scarecrow**

Amanda loved watching how excited Jamie was about his birthday party. She wished that she could rent a huge barn and let him invite all the people he wanted but money was too tight for that. She knew in the end that Jamie would be happy with a few friends, one of her special cakes and the presents that she had managed to buy for him. It never hurt anyone to dream once in a while though. She certainly did enough of that only somehow some of her dreams seemed to be coming true. As she sent the boys to the back yard to enjoy their lunch, her mother had to ruin her nice thoughts by bringing up Dean. Lately she realized more and more that a long term relationship with him wasn't ever going to work but she still hadn't figured out how to break up with him without hurting him and she definitely hadn't figured out how to tell her Mother. He really was a good man so she didn't want to hurt him any more than she had to. Her Mother seemed to love him and spent time with him even when Amanda wasn't around. It was weird having her Mother so close to a boyfriend but she had done that at first with her ex-husband too when she first met him. Her thoughts were brought back from reminiscing about her ex when her Mother told her that Dean wanted to name a hurricane after her. Who does that? Wouldn't that be something you name after your ex wife or ex girlfriend? Well if she broke up with him, then he would have more of a reason to call the next hurricane Amanda. Her Mother was really excited about it though and it was only the ringing of the telephone that saved her from further stories about why she should marry Dean.

As usual Lee forgot to say hello when Amanda answered the phone and told her that he needed her. Billy had given her the week off so that she could prepare and have Jamie's birthday party so she hadn't planned to go into the agency. She reminded Lee of this as she explained that she was making Jamie's cake. Only Lee would come up with the idea of spicing it up with a 5th of rum though she was surprised that he didn't say scotch. Then Lee explained that he had a sick friend and he needed someone to come help him. Of Course the Bedside Bluebelle side of Amanda kicked in and she couldn't say no then and agreed to come over. Her Mother had overheard her side of the conversation and asked what the problem was. Having just mentioned rum, the first thought that came through Amanda's head was a St. Bernard dog carrying rum to a sick person so she told her Mother that she had to go help a St. Bernard that had a hangover. Amanda was putting the cake batter in the fridge and didn't see the exasperated look that her Mother gave her.

Amanda drove quickly to Lee's apartment wondering about this person that Lee was worried about. He didn't seem to have a lot of friends so she couldn't help but be curious about Melvin. Imagine her surprise when Melvin turned out to be a fish. He didn't just have Melvin though; he had a whole tank of fish. She had remembered them when she was there taking care of Alexi but he had never called any of them by name before. Poor Melvin did appear to be a little green around the gills and was swimming funny. The other fish which were mostly gold fish totally ignored him. Melvin's usually bright blue fins looked a little ragged for a Siamese fighting fish. Amanda realized right away that she had been suckered into taking care of Lee's fish while he went off gallivanting to Bermuda. He even called her his partner though she knew he would deny it later if she called herself his partner. In the end, she agreed to take care of his fish just like he knew she would. She really needed to learn how to say no. She couldn't help but wonder if there was an agency training course for that.

As Lee left the apartment and headed for the airport, Amanda decided to open the window to try to air out some of the smell. She couldn't help but take a deep breath of fresh air and look out at the street below. She definitely preferred her quaint little house in the suburbs to being in an apartment that didn't even have a yard. She realized that she was procrastinating though and decided to start tackling his apartment. She had just cleaned it a month ago so the man had destroyed it with little consideration in such a short period of time. As she was piling his dirty clothes up to be washed, she came across a set of "Lee" and "She" robes. The more she learned about this man, the more he amazed her. What kind of man made up a "she" robe for his guests? They were at least matching robes she thought as she rolled her eyes. She was still thinking about that when the phone rang. It was natural for her to answer a ringing phone but of course it wasn't her job to answer Lee's phone. Worse yet, why did she acknowledge that she was Scarecrow? Oh, whatever. His friend just hung up when he realized it wasn't him; talk about rude. She sat down on the couch to begin emptying his gym bag when she noticed the doorknob moving. A few seconds later two men burst in with guns pointing at her.

"Well little lady, it's nice to meet you. Now we are going to walk quietly downstairs all together and go on a nice little ride. We suggest you cooperate and don't call any attention to yourself if you want to live another day. Got it?" The man named Jamison said. Amanda nodded in understanding. When they reached their van, Jamison opened the side door and Amanda saw that there was a crate inside that said Antiques on the side. Jamison took the top off while his partner Delong kept a gun trained on Amanda. "Get in" Delong said to her.

"You want me to get into the crate?"

"Yes, now." he motioned with his gun. Amanda had no choice but to obey. Who were these men and why were they taking her? As she laid in the crate while they took her to some unknown place, Amanda King began to get angry. Now Amanda didn't get angry very often but this day was not working out the way she had planned. First Lee interrupted her making Jamie's cake and now these two men had kidnapped her and she had no idea why. Someone needed to hear a piece of her mind. In fact she was so mad that she forgot to be scared. Where were they taking her? She hoped they got there soon; she still had a cake to bake.

 **TBC**


	5. Chapter 5 - Cagney and Lacey

**Chapter 5 - Cagney and Lacey**

Lee couldn't help but smile as he left his apartment. Amanda was such a good sport to help him out with his fish. He knew she wouldn't be able to say no and he had been right. Now he could go take off on vacation and leave all this stuff behind for a week. He had called a cab before Amanda got there and it was waiting for him when he got downstairs. He stowed his bags in the trunk and then jumped into the back seat. In no time the cab was pulling into Dulles Airport. Lee paid the cab driver, got his stuff out of the trunk and made his way into the terminal. He picked up his tickets and sat down to wait for boarding. What a whirlwind the past few weeks had been. He sure couldn't wait to get away and enjoy some down time. He hadn't had much time at all to date and he really was feeling lonely because of it. It hadn't helped that lately Amanda seemed to be too involved in his cases and he had to keep saving her. At least the next week, she would be back to being a homemaker. Billy had given her the week off and now Lee wasn't there so there would be no reason for her to go to the agency. She just had to feed his fish, there wasn't anything more safe than that. When he got back from Bermuda, he was going to need to talk to her again about how she shouldn't be working for the agency. Maybe after she enjoyed a week away from it, she would realize that it was nice not to be worried about her safety all the time. In the meantime, Bermuda was perfect for Lee. He would meet a bunch of beautiful ladies who wouldn't be expecting any kind of commitment from him like some of the girls from the Steno Pool did. Sometimes dating some of them made things complicated because Lee sure wasn't looking to settle down but lately he sensed that some of the girls were looking for more. He just wanted to have some fun and anyone who went out with Lee Stetson should know him and his habits by now but some of the girls were determined to be the one who hooked him up to the ball and chain. There wouldn't be any of those concerns during this vacation and Lee wondered just how many women he could fit in to only 7 days.

His flight was being called for boarding so Lee got up and walked to the gate. After handing over his ticket, he made his way onto the airplane, stowed his luggage and took his seat. His long legs made it uncomfortable to be in the plane but he would make the sacrifice for this trip. He picked up a magazine that he had brought along and began looking through it. Maybe he would take a nap once the flight was under way. It would make the time go faster and he would be nice and refreshed once they landed. As his mind wandered to how relaxing this trip was going to be, he suddenly heard shouting and a lot of commotion coming from the front of the plane. Two large men were pushing their way through onto the plane saying "Ma'am, we are Federal Agents. I showed you my badge; now please step aside so I can do my duty."

Lee wondered what was going on when suddenly a man appeared in front of him.

"Stetson?"

"Yeah, who are you?"

"You need to come with us."

"Why, what's going on?"

"Don't ask any questions, just quietly come with us" the man said as he showed Lee his agency badge.

"Nah, I'm on vacation. Get someone else to help you out."

"Sir, this was not a request. You need to come with me now."

"And if I don't?" Lee asked.

The next thing he knew he was being lifted out of his seat by two strong sets of hands and being pulled to the front of the plane.

"Wait! My luggage is on the plane." One of the men gestured to the flight attendant and she went back and grabbed his bags and handed them over. By that time Lee had stopped struggling and the men just held onto him as they guided him out of the airport terminal and into an agency car.

"Now would someone like to tell me what the hell that was all about?" Lee asked

"You'll find out soon enough. We were told to go collect you. I'm sure your boss will explain everything to you once we are back at the agency."

Lee couldn't believe this was happening. All his plans to get away on a nice quiet vacation just melted away. Someone was going to hear about this. He wondered if Billy knew what was going on.

When they got back to the agency, the goons wouldn't let him walk in alone. Instead, they both grabbed an arm and escorted him inside and marched him to Billy's office. Lee was furious. As Lee saw Billy he said "Oh gee, it's nice to be back. Tell Cagney and Lacey to let go will ya?"

Billy's response was "Aww Lee, we're so glad to see you." He told the agents to let Lee go and dismissed them.

Lee was fuming. He went on to say that it wasn't often that the passenger gets hijacked; it was usually the plane. That was when Francine made Lee listen to the tape that they had received. Billy then gave him the fish food that had been sent as proof.

When Lee realized that they had Amanda in his place, his heart stopped beating for a few seconds. How the hell did this happen? He had given her a nice safe task to do while he was gone and yet she still managed to find trouble. This couldn't be happening. He never would have guessed that they would come after him in his apartment. After all, it wasn't like it was common knowledge where he lived and since Scarecrow was a code name, no one was supposed to know that Lee Stetson was the Scarecrow. That meant that there was a possible leak in the department but he didn't have time to worry about that right now. He would have to address it later. Right now, he had to figure out how to get Amanda back home to her Mother and her kids.

 **TBC**


	6. Chapter 6 - The Exchange

**Chapter 6 - The Exchange**

Amanda felt the crate she was in being lifted and heard the two men grunt as they carried her someplace. There was an obnoxious barking dog nearby that didn't even sound real. She just wished it would shut up. Where was she and why had they taken her here? Her crate was set down and soon she heard them begin to pry the top off. As she stood up, she was met by a man who told her how much he admired her work. She was angry and lashed out at him. Lee had already interrupted her day enough and now this man was making it so she couldn't finish making Jamie's Birthday cake. He didn't seem too phased by Amanda's anger though and then he called her "Scarecrow." Wait, what? These people thought she was Lee. How could they possibly think that? She spent the next hour trying to convince them otherwise, showing them everything from her id cards to a letter Jamie had written to her. The man who had arranged to have her brought there, just laughed at her. She soon found out that he was exchanging her for an important Russian agent that the US had just captured. If the US wouldn't agree to the exchange, then she would be killed. Amanda couldn't believe this was happening. Didn't this only happen in the movies? All her anger disappeared and she got scared. Would Lee find her in time? No, Lee was already on his way to Bermuda. There was no one to save her. Would Mr. Melrose arrange for the trade? They wouldn't just leave her in this situation would they? To be killed? She had two small children. She knew that this line of work was dangerous but she didn't expect to die with a mistaken identity. They soon tired of her talking and left her with a guard. Amanda couldn't help but stare at poem from her son and feel overwhelmed. Who would save her? There was no one. She wondered if Lee would miss her at all when he found out what had happened. She sat staring out into space for a couple of hours. During that time, she heard an ice cream truck go by. She envisioned the happy children who would be running to buy their favorites. Sadly, it didn't look like she would ever get to see her sons do that again.

Finally the men came back and one of them placed a blindfold onto Amanda. They guided her out to a van and made her get in. As they drove, she wondered if this was the end? Was she on the way to be killed? It didn't seem right though because they had not given the government enough time. She couldn't help but express this out loud and was told that she actually looked like she was scared. Well that was because she was. The van stopped and she was led out and walked to an area that seemed to have nothing going on around it. She was pushed down onto a seat and soon she could tell she was in a golf cart. Were they taking her out into the woods to shoot her? She asked where she was as the cart stopped. The man took off her blindfold and she blinked to adjust her eyes to the sun which blinded her since she had been in the dark for so long. As she stared in the distance, she saw Lee. Was that really Lee? He had come after all? The man instructed her to drive and not to touch the man in the other cart or else he would shoot her. He didn't offer to untie the ropes around her wrists though so she got into the driver's seat and began driving with her hands still tied up. She focused all her attention on Lee and getting to him where she knew she would be safe. As she was about to pass the Russian agent, this little old man came barreling out in his golf cart into the middle of both of them and began rambling. He seemed like a nice little old man but he really needed to let them pass through. He suddenly noticed the handcuffs on Rostov and the ropes around Amanda's wrists and made an excuse of needing to leave. After the way was clear, Amanda began driving again toward Lee. He motioned for her to go around a tree so they would have protection in case the other guy decided to shoot at them. Lee climbed into the golf cart as Amanda pulled it over. All of the tears that she had been holding in began leaking out of her eyes. She had been so scared and she had never been so happy to see anyone as she was to see Lee. As she tearfully told him about how they wouldn't listen to her and thought she was Scarecrow, he comforted her while holding her against his chest. She sat like that for 5 minutes, crying it all out while he rubbed her shoulder and let her. He kept assuring her that she was safe now and that it was all over. Finally her tears stopped and she wiped the last of them with her fingers as she picked her head up and looked at this man who had just saved her. "Thank you Lee. I can never repay you for saving my life." 

"Well I was the one who put you in danger; if I hadn't asked you to feed my fish, you wouldn't have been there. I should have known that they would do something like that after we finally nabbed Rostov."

"Now, it's not your fault Lee. Is Rostov really that important?"

"Yeah, he has been in this country for 20 years and I have spent the last 8 trying to nab him. He has compromised our security so many times and I finally caught him. But hey, that doesn't matter. Are you okay? Let's get you home to your family." Lee said

"I'm okay now. I'm sorry about soaking your shirt with my tears."

"It's okay. No, really it's okay. You know I normally hate tears more than bullets but today, you had every right to cry. I'm just glad that Billy had me pulled off the plane so I could come save you."

"Me too. Lee, can you take me home now?"

"Yes Ma'am" Lee said with a reassuring smile.

 **TBC**


	7. Chapter 7 - The Rescue

**Chapter 7 - The Rescue**

Dirk was a jerk. It was unacceptable that the Department would not save Amanda. She was just a civilian. It wasn't like she was an agent who expected to be killed one day AND it wasn't like she had the training to even have a chance to save herself in a situation like this. Lee would have expected them to desert him but not Amanda who was about to die in his place just because she was being nice and he had conned her into feeding his fish. No, he couldn't live with this one. He hadn't kept her safe. He had put her right in harm's way. Losing Eric had just about killed Lee but losing Amanda would be his undoing because he would always blame himself for involving her in the agency and not forcing her to leave. Eric was an agent. He knew that his life was on the line all the time and though it hurt that Eric had died for Lee; that was part of being an agent. Amanda wasn't an agent though. She was just a Mother with 2 small boys who were going to be Motherless because Lee handed that stupid package to Amanda at the train station and let her become involve in something she should never have been. He had to fix this. The only way to do that was to steal Rostov and make the trade. Lee knew that if he did that; the country would consider it an act of treason and he would have to be on the run for the rest of his life. Lee didn't have much of any family and certainly no one who would miss him. Amanda though; well she had those 2 young boys. Lee knew what it was like to grow up without a parent and he would be damned if Jamie and Phillip were going to face that. No, Lee Stetson needed to fix this.

When he saw Jack and his partner bring Rostov to the elevator, Lee immediately acted. He told them that Rostov was wanted in Recon and that Lee was to take him there. Jack hesitated but then agreed. Lee would have gotten out without anyone noticing but Jack and Steve liked the ladies as much as Lee did so when Sophie walked by them, the guys both decided to check out her backside view and noticed that Lee was bringing Rostov into the outside elevator. They immediately issued a security alert but Lee was able to sneak Rostov out the front door before they could stop him.

Meanwhile Mrs. Marston couldn't help but silently cheer him on. Francine had told her earlier that day about Amanda being kidnapped and that they wanted to trade her for Rostov. As she watched Lee go out the front door, she pushed the automatic locks just as the door swung shut behind him. She really hoped that Lee would be able to rescue Amanda. She had watched Lee after Eric's death. She didn't know if Lee would survive if Amanda was killed in his place. It was worth the chewing out that she would get later from Billy Melrose. She knew he was just doing his job and she knew that Billy was a good man so he would be secretly hoping Lee got Amanda out safely too.

Lee put Rostov into his car and sped out of the parking lot before Scotty could stop him. After he was a few blocks away, he pulled over and called the number that had been left to arrange the trade. He followed the instructions and soon was at the golf course. Rostov had no idea that Lee was the Scarecrow but he could tell that he was an experienced agent. He couldn't help but admire how well Lee had handled everything. Perhaps in a different situation, they would have made an incredible team together. As Lee stood standing by the golf cart with his gun in hand, he finally saw Amanda being driven in a golf cart from the opposite end of the course. She was blindfolded but seemed to be okay. She had better be okay or else he would kill these men himself. He yelled for the man to let Amanda go and she began driving toward Lee. Rostov told Lee to take care and then headed to his associate. Everything was going well until an old man looking for his lost golf ball popped out and blocked Amanda and Rostov's progress. Lee couldn't hear what was being said but he could tell that the man suddenly realized he should get out of there and hurried away. Fearing another interruption, Lee started mouthing the words "come on, Come on" and was so relieved when Amanda pulled the cart up to him. He quickly got in and she drove around the tree to give them some protection from gun fire. Lee was busy making sure that the area was safe and so at first he didn't notice how upset Amanda was. As he turned to face her, he saw the tears forming in her eyes and his heart ached for her. She even admitted to being scared. He had put her through some pretty scary things and she had never acted or sounded as scared as she was at that moment. He untied her wrists and then quickly pulled her to his chest and cuddled her safely there while reassuring her that she was safe now and that it was all over. He really hated seeing her cry. He had always hated tears since as a young child, he had been ridiculed if he cried but Amanda was tough and this was more than she could take and he knew it. He let her cry until there were no more tears and then he lifted her chin and told her how brave she had been and that he was proud of her. He admitted that he had been scared too. It was the truth. If he hadn't been able to get Rostov out of the agency, Amanda would have died. Thank God it hadn't come to that. Lee had watched Rostov as he made his escape and he thought sadly that all the excitement of catching the man had gone out the window. He wouldn't rest until he had him back in custody. Right now, Amanda was his first priority.

Amanda and Lee switched seats and Lee drove the golf cart back out to where his Porsche was waiting and gave Amanda a ride home. As he dropped her off, she yelled out "I'll see you soon." Lee waved and smiled at her without saying anything. He knew that he likely wouldn't ever see her again. He needed to go grab some things out of his apartment and find a place to lay low until he could get out of town or until he could figure out a way to reclaim Rostov. Amanda didn't need to know any of that though. She had enough to be worried about and maybe if he was no longer with the agency, she would finally give up this silly idea of working as a spy. Just maybe.

 **TBC**


	8. Chapter 8 - I Want to Help You

**Chapter 8 - I Want to Help You**

Amanda was so glad to be home and now she needed to get busy on preparing Jamie's Birthday party. She had gone to the party store and picked up some games and party favors and she needed to get everything organized. Suddenly the front door bell rang and her Mother yelled out that she would get it. As she came into the living room, Francine was behind her. Amanda was not happy that Francine had come to her house. She had always made it very clear that agency people could not show up there because she would have a hard time explaining to her Mother who they were. In the end, she made up a story about Francine being a client with a Chimp. She knew that her mother would likely enjoy that story much more than if she had said that Francine had a cat. Her Mother and Francine bonded immediately as Francine turned on the charm and soon she was able to convince Dotty to go to the kitchen to heat up strudel so the two ladies could talk. Francine quickly told Amanda about the predicament that Lee was in. Amanda was shocked to hear that Lee had acted on his own to free her. For just a moment, she allowed herself to feel emotional about that. Then she realized that Lee would be yelling at her if he saw the tears so she shut them off and promised Francine that it would be okay. Francine quickly made her exit before she was caught any longer having to make small talk with Dotty. Meanwhile, Amanda's mind had gone into overdrive. Lee wouldn't ask her for help. He hadn't told her that what he was doing was against orders so he sure wouldn't want to involve her now. No, it was up to her to figure out where he was and go to him. As she was staring out into space thinking, her Mother came back in and mentioned that they hadn't done their exercises that morning yet and that it was so important to stay in routine for the health of their mind and soul. Amanda immediately realized that that was the answer. Lee said that he had liked to work out when he was upset. If this didn't upset him, nothing would. Since he obviously had a bag from the University Athletic Club; that was where his membership would be held. She explained to her Mother that she had promised one of her clients to come over early that morning to feed their parakeet but that she had to make a phone call first. She called the club and asked if Lee was there. It took a couple of minutes but then she heard the familiar voice on the phone. "Amanda, why are you calling me?"

"We have to talk Lee. I won't take no for an answer. I'll be at the club in 15 minutes so be waiting for me at the front door." Amanda hung up before he could argue with her. She quickly ran out the door and headed for the club. As she pulled up, she beeped the horn and he came out and got in the car. He couldn't believe it was really her and that she had figured out what none of the agents had so far. He began taking off all the extra clothing he had put on to hide himself and typical Amanda got nervous about him undressing. During a different situation, he would have teased her but this wasn't a laughing matter. Then she got emotional and told him that he had saved her life and that she wanted to help him. He told her that there wasn't anything she could do just as he noticed what appeared to be a tail. He had Amanda speed up and the car behind them did too so he instructed Amanda to go through a red light. After making a couple of turns, they were finally able to lose them.

Lee had Amanda stop at a convenience store to buy a local map and a protractor. He then took over driving and drove to a neighborhood where there wasn't any traffic. He spread the map on top of the hood of Amanda's car and she was able to tell him enough information so that he knew approximately where the house was. He was really impressed that Amanda remembered so many details even while she had been scared. However, when she found out that Lee intended to find the house, her heart sank. She didn't know if she was ready to go back to that house where she was almost killed.

They set out to find the house. After 2 hours of not being able to figure out where the house was, the two of them were at each others throats. Lee was getting frustrated that none of the houses seemed right and he was quickly losing patience. Then Amanda began rambling about how Pretzel the Clown was supposed to be at Jamie's birthday party but had Chicken Pox and no one that age should have gone through all of life and not had Chicken Pox. Lee's headache was getting huge from her rambling and he began to get really short with her when she began explaining that she had to go by sounds. Suddenly an ice cream truck when by and Amanda told Lee to pull over. As they sat listening, Amanda suddenly heard that fake sounding dog bark. It turned out that it belonged to a German Shepherd Dog and she couldn't help but think for a minute that the breeding must have been wrong for it because it sure didn't sound like a normal German Shepherd Dog. She pointed it out to Lee and he looked at her and asked her if she was sure? "Yes, I'm very sure Lee. That dog does not bark normal. There is no mistaking it; that is the same dog."

Lee got out and helped Amanda out of the car and guided her to the front door of the house. He rang the doorbell and a little woman answered it. He quickly showed his badge and pushed his way through. The whole time the little woman denied any wrong doing. Amanda recognized the living room though and said there was a tea set in the bottom of the cupboard as she proudly opened the door to show Lee. He looked at her with a nervous grin and pointed to the cupboard. It was filled with Hula girls. She then told him that the bookcase had a hidden bar and pulled the book that she thought would open it up. It wasn't right and Lee began to get nervous that they were in the wrong house. Amanda knew it was right though so she began pulling books down and suddenly the whole bar moved and Lee disappeared. Amanda's heart leaped when she saw Zinoviev had appeared and was holding a gun. She quickly pulled the book down again and Lee appeared and grabbed Amanda's hand to make a run for it. However, Roscoe the big goon was blocking the way and pulled a gun. Zinoviev was truly amazed that Scarecrow had found her way back to the house. Lee made one attempt to get him to let Amanda go but Zinoviev told her to "tell the big fellow to keep quiet." Amanda repeated those words to Lee and he gave her an amazed look that she didn't notice.

"Well Scarecrow, what do I do with you now? You are going to have to come with us. I can't leave you here. Roscoe go tell Jamison and Delong that I need them."

"Yes Sir" Roscoe said as he headed out to find the two henchmen.

"So I guess you will be joining us as we finish getting the shipment ready."

"And what shipment would that be?" Lee demanded.

Zinoviev looked at Amanda and asked "Does your assistant always get so mouthy?"

Amanda smiled and said "Well you know, since we are going to go with you, it wouldn't hurt to know what is so important that you are worried about me interrupting it."

Zinoviev chuckled again. "You are definitely a crafty one; aren't you Scarecrow? Well it just so happens that we have some plane parts that are finding a new home in the Middle East and they don't like to be kept waiting."

"No, we wouldn't want to keep them waiting." Amanda said as she glanced at Lee.

Delong and Jamison came into the room at that moment with their guns out. Jamison said "Well look who missed us." Delong motioned for them to go ahead of him "Don't try anything; my gun will be aimed right at Scarecrow. Just walk out to the van and get in."

Amanda looked at Lee and he nodded to go ahead. They all walked out to the van and got in. Amanda remembered why she hadn't wanted to find the house again.

 **TBC**


	9. Chapter 9 - The Capture

**Chapter 9 -The Capture**

Not much was said on the way to the warehouse. When the van pulled up to the dock doors, Delong motioned for them to get out. Lee and Amanda were then guided to a small office that had a table. Zinoviev told them both to have a seat. As he sat totally amused that he had caught Scarecrow a second time, he continued to chat with her about what to do with her. Once Amanda realized that it wasn't a good thing for him to realize that she wasn't Scarecrow, she decided to push her luck with him. He seemed to be very amused by her so she added some Amanda King charm and thought maybe she could talk him into letting her go. He laughed at her suggestions but then decided to send her to Moscow in a refrigerator. Didn't they only do that in the movies? After making that announcement, he headed out to see how they were doing with getting the shipment ready. Amanda looked at Lee and realized that he was as stunned as she was. Well it was no time for the real Scarecrow to not come through for her so she started telling him to "think." He seemed to be really struggling though which was scaring Amanda. She had just faced death and he saved her, if he didn't come up with a solution soon, she would be soon in Moscow and no one there would believe her that she wasn't Scarecrow so she didn't have any chance of coming out alive. In her frustration, she told Lee that he wasn't the one that was going to be stuffed into a refrigerator and shipped to Moscow and he agreed but reminded her that he would be shot instead. It made her realize that they were truly in this together and if they didn't act like it, they would never come up with a way out. She apologized to him and he grasped her arm to tell her it was okay. At that moment, Jamison made his appearance and it was like a light bulb went on in Lee's brain. All agents were given pills to take so they wouldn't be taken alive. Amanda didn't have a pill but they would have no way to know that. He hoped that like in the past, she would quickly understand what her part should be and play along. He was not disappointed. She followed his lead and clinched her jaw like the pill was in her mouth and then she even made a moan like she had bitten the pill. It gave Lee the distraction he needed so he could punch Jamison. They quickly ran through the warehouse and ducked behind one of the Shelving racks full of boxes that were near an exit. Amanda offered to stay while Lee made a run for it so he could call the agency but since she didn't even know how to shoot, that was not going to work. Lee had no intentions of Amanda staying behind anyway. He didn't go through all the work of saving her, just to have her taken away to Moscow. He took a position to cover her and waited for her to run. After a few seconds, he turned back wondering why she was hesitating and discovered she was looking for change. He couldn't help the look of disbelief that crossed his face. How did a Suburban housewife go out of the house without any money on her? She never ceased to amaze him. He quickly managed to scoop up some change for her and sent her on her way.

Meanwhile, Amanda ran out the door while guns were being fired. She couldn't believe her luck that there was a phone right outside and quickly ran to it. She called the agency but found that Billy had left for the day. She asked to speak to Francine but the operator wouldn't put her through. Once again, she realized that she really needed a code name and she really needed to push again for training. This person probably didn't believe that she had really been at the agency and so she tried to convince her by describing Billy's office. None of that was working so she finally asked if she could speak to Mrs. Marston. Mrs. Marston took over the line and when she found out it was Amanda, she immediately dispatched agents to go check things out. Amanda King might be only a civilian but Mrs. Marston knew that if Amanda was calling, than she was telling the truth. Amanda King was probably one of the most honest people that Mrs. Marston had ever known even if she still hadn't officially met her. Amanda thanked her and then made her way back into the warehouse to try to help Lee. She realized right away that they had captured him and it was up to her to save him. She heard that they were taking him outside so she looked up quickly to see if she could find something to knock over onto them. Thankfully she saw that there was a whole rack full of tires. She noticed a cutting tool as she made her way to that rack and grabbed it. When she reached the shelf with the tires, she quickly cut them loose and waited for Delong, Jamison and Lee to walk underneath. Her plan worked perfectly and she was able to knock the tires down onto the two thugs and gave Lee a chance to hide. Without really thinking whether it would work, Amanda then yelled out that she was back and that they were not to move. When she realized that it was working, she instructed Lee to disarm them. As he took control of the situation, Amanda began climbing down from her hiding place and couldn't help but feel pretty proud of herself. Since she was supposed to be the Scarecrow, the part had gone to her head a bit and soon she was ordering Lee around and telling him to make sure he didn't forget to frisk them. It was only after Lee told her she could leave her silver bullet and ride off that she realized that she might have gone too far. Meanwhile, Zinoviev continued to sing her praises and mentioned meeting her again someday. She really hoped that day never came though.

The tires had knocked Delong out and he was still unconscious when the agency men arrived. They came in and quickly handcuffed the 3 men and loaded them up into agency cars to be brought back for interrogation. A black company car pulled up a few minutes later and Billy got out. Mrs. Marston had called him at home to let him know what was going on and he quickly sped to the warehouse.

"Scarecrow" he said as he walked in. Both Amanda and Lee answered and then began laughing. It was a good way to break the tension of what they had both just faced. Billy looked at them both, wondering what the private joke was about.

"Lee, you know that I have to take you in now, right?"

"Yeah, I know Billy."

"What's going to happen to him sir?" Amanda asked.

"Well obviously he just captured the men who orchestrated Rostov's escape so that will help him. And from the looks of things, we just stopped them from smuggling all kinds of plane parts to the Middle East. I don't know whether it will be enough but you know I'll fight for you Lee. "

"I know you will Billy."

"Sir, I know about how the agency wasn't going to save me."

"Mrs. King, my hands were tied" Billy started to explain.

"I know, but Lee saved my life. No one has ever done anything like that for me before. Now you know that Lee is one of the best agents that agency has ever had. How can they treat him like that? I mean, I understand why they don't care about me, but Lee has given himself to this agency for years now. It doesn't seem fair that they would punish him."

"Mrs. King, I'm going to do everything I can for him. Now, let me give you a lift home"

"Sir, I think I would like to go with you and Lee."

"Amanda, it's okay. I'll be okay. I promise." Lee said gently. "I believe you have a birthday party to finish preparing for, right?"

Amanda let out a sigh. "Okay, but if I can do anything, please let me know."

"I will." Lee said with a smile.

The three of them got into Billy's car and Billy delivered Amanda to a local grocery store. The agency had located Amanda's car earlier in the day which allowed them to arrest Roscoe and the other occupants of the house where Amanda had been held captive. They had taken finger prints for proof that she had been there. Then the agency had Amanda's car towed back to her neighborhood and left in the grocery store parking lot.

"Do you need me to give a statement?" Amanda asked as she got out of the car.

"Of course you will need to be debriefed but it is going to take some time to work on the people we just picked up and Lee and I need time to chat so I'll arrange a time for you to come in later to do that, okay?" Billy said with what he hoped would be an encouraging smile.

Amanda nervously, said "Okay. Good luck Lee." She turned and got into her car as Billy and Lee drove away. She couldn't help but think that the agency was not a place she wanted to be after all if they would prosecute the likes of Lee Stetson.

 **TBC**


	10. Chapter 10 - We Have an Offer

**Chapter 10 - We Have an Offer**

Dirk was waiting in Billy's office when they arrived. "So Scarecrow, I see that you have had fun at the agency's expense once again."

"I don't know what you mean Dirk."

"Don't you? You not only disobeyed a direct order, but you lost one of the most important Leaders of espionage by just handing him over to his freedom. Then just when we are ready to throw the book at you, you manage to come up with a huge smuggling operation and single handily captured all those responsible."

"Well actually, that woman that you all wanted to let die had a very important part of helping me capture that smuggling ring. Amanda King actually amazed even me in her handling of this whole situation of being mistaken for Scarecrow. I mean it helped that my reputation gave her some added security but she played the part very well and she played a very important role in capturing them."

"Why Lee, I almost think you are complimenting Mrs. King." Billy said with a wink.

"Awww, come on Billy. I can't help it. She really did a good job with this one. The agency was ready to let her die but she proved that she is valuable. I'm upset that they don't see it that way."

"Well Scarecrow, the agency does not take kindly to being disobeyed. Not only did you disobey them but you enlisted Mrs. King's help too."

"Yes, that's right, I made Amanda help me so you keep her out of this." Lee demanded as he realized that Dirk could bring her up on charges too.

"Oh no, I wouldn't think of keeping her out of this. See, I have talked to the Intelligence Oversight Committee. They still want to go ahead with the treason charges BUT it seems that you have a friend in high places. The President himself has gotten involved in this whole affair and he has made it known that he wants to give you a chance to fix things. So Stetson starting tomorrow, you will have exactly 2 weeks to locate Rostov and bring him back in. However, you may not use any other agent to help you. You will have your full clearance at the agency so you can continue to use other resources here but the only person that the committee is allowing to help you is Amanda King. So let's see if you are still singing her praises in 2 weeks when she can't help you nail Rostov."

"Come on Dirk, that isn't fair. The original sting took weeks to set him up and then a lot of man power. You expect that just Amanda and I can bring him back in? How do we even know he is still in the country?"

"We don't. That will be your job to figure out. I'm sorry Stetson but as the old saying goes, you made your bed, now you can lie in it. Good luck" Dirk smugly said as he left Billy's office.

"Can you believe that jerk?" Lee asked Billy.

"Lee, he is actually doing you a huge favor. Now I already had agents at all the airports and we know that Rostov has not left the country unless he drove away from the DC area to do it. There is a good chance that he intended to slip out with Zinoviev's group. Now that they have been captured, he might decide to stay here and wait things out for a bit. You are a good agent Lee. If anyone can capture him again, it is you. My hands are tied with giving you actual people but you know I'll give you any other help I can. You said yourself that Amanda did a good job and she's good with the computer. Let her help you. She needs to help you after what you did for her."

"I know. You are right Billy. If we get him though, I want you to help me to encourage Amanda to get out of the agency. This one was too close. She almost left those 2 boys without a mother. It is bad enough that their father is never around, children shouldn't grow up without their mothers." Billy nodded his head realizing that Lee was talking from a personal stand point. This was not a time to open up that wound.

There was a knock on the door and Billy yelled "come in". Francine walked into the office with a grin on her face as she rushed and hugged Lee.

"I'm so glad you are okay. Can I do anything? Are they bringing you up on charges still?"

"It will be okay Francine. I do have a favor to ask though."

"Anything Lee. You just name it."

"I need you to help with the interrogation of Jamison. I think he will be the easier one to deal with. I want to try to find out what he knows about Rostov's current whereabouts."

"Oh, we already got some of that out of him. It appears that when they rescued him, they put him up in a safe house over on the west side of town."

"Wow, great job Francine. How did they find out that?"

"Well a little truth serum and it didn't take much for him to begin bragging. Do you remember how easy it was for Rostov to gain access to Green Briar College? Well there was a reason for that. It appears that Rostov hasn't just been in this country hanging out. He actually has a Masters in Teaching and is a renowned Professor in this country. Everyone knows him within the college/university community but they know him as Professor Sprite. He teaches mostly technical classes like computers, chemistry and physics. It has allowed him to stay in the circles he needed to be in to get clearance to do much of the work he has done since no one thought of him as a spy."

Lee let out a low whistle. "Wow, he sure had us fooled. No wonder he kept giving us the slip over the years. Is he still at the house on the West Side?"

"No, we had our agents go out quietly to check. His friends weren't very talkative but they did say that he had found somewhere else to live but they didn't know where. He's still here Lee. He thinks he beat us all and he's going to continue his operations here." Francine said.

"Well that's good news. Now I just have to figure out how to find him."

"I'll help you." Francine said.

"No, sorry Francine. Dirk was very clear that there would be no agents involved in helping Lee. No, Lee will have to enlist Amanda's help on this one." Billy stated.

Francine let out a sigh. "You know where we are if we can do anything behind the scenes." She gave him another quick hug and a peck on the cheek and rushed off before he could see how upset she was. She loved teasing him but deep down, he meant the world to her and she really hoped he was able to bring Rostov in so he could continue to work for the agency. It wouldn't be the same without him there.

Lee watched her go and said "She's a good woman deep down."

Billy said "Yeah, I know."

"Well I'm going to get out of here. I have a few phone calls to make and I need to start planning this operation." Lee said.

"Are you calling Amanda?" Billy asked.

"Not right now, she has Jamie's birthday party and I want her to be able to enjoy that without worrying about me right now."

"Good plan" Billy said. "Let me know if I can do anything to help. You know I will do my best."

"I know Billy. You are a good friend. Thanks." Lee said as he left Billy's office.

Two weeks wasn't very long to find and capture Rostov. He also didn't like having to ask Amanda to help. He was really determined this would be the last time though. If he didn't need her help this time, he would have had the talk with her now but he would wait until after Rostov was back in custody.

Lee punched the elevator button and stood deep in thoughts. He would miss working with Amanda but it really was for the best. Now if only he could convince her of that.

 **TBC**


	11. Chapter 11 - Friends in High Places

**Chapter 11 - Friends in High Places**

When Lee reached his apartment, he went in and took a nice hot shower to clear his head. As he was letting the hot water pound on his flesh, he couldn't help but think about Amanda and how incredible she had been during this case. She had been scared, but she had kept her head and she had followed his lead at every turn. He wasn't sure how many trained agents could have found their way back to a house using only their ears and senses. She had not only found the right neighborhood but was able to find the right house. He had felt so helpless when he realized that they had kidnapped her in his place. He was really impressed with her even though he wouldn't tell her that. She went from a scared woman to one who kept her head and figured out what she had to do to help stop them. Once she realized that she could use his Scarecrow persona, she had played the part perfectly and convinced Zinoviev to give up without anyone getting hurt. He chuckled as he recalled her climbing down from the shelves and asking if there was anything else she could do. At the time, he had been slightly annoyed that she had acted so smug about capturing them but looking back, he realized that she had every right to feel that way. Amanda King was truly the most remarkable woman he had ever worked with at the agency including Francine. Oh, Francine was good at her job but Amanda had real instincts and she was genuine all the time. She had such a good heart, something that people didn't keep when working for the agency. He didn't want her to change and he really hoped he could convince her to leave the agency before the job hardened her. Meanwhile, his thoughts went back to how she had managed to figure out where the house was. She had gotten so exasperated with him when he was giving her a hard time about finding the house and she mentioned how Jamie had wanted Pretzel the Clown for his party but he claimed to have Chicken Pox.

Lee had to admit that it did seem strange that a man in his 40's wouldn't have had Chicken Pox yet. Lee shut off the water and stepped out of the shower. He grabbed a towel and ran it up and down his arms and then over his chest. He went lower and dried his lower body and then let the towel drop to the floor. He grabbed a second towel and tied it around his hips and then walked out to his living room. He picked up the phone book and looked in the yellow pages under clowns. He soon saw the ad for Pretzel the Clown and called the number. He was surprised to hear a man pick up.

"Hello, Pretzel the Clown here. What can I do for you?"

"Well hello Mr. Pretzel. I can call you that right?"

"Sure man, you can call me anything you like as long as you are a paying customer."

"Well I understand you were booked for a party on Saturday."

"Yeah, I was but I had to cancel it. I'm not feeling well." Pretzel said.

"Oh, well I wonder if you will suddenly be feeling better if I told you that I'm a Federal Agent and that I have friends with the IRS. I'm sure I can convince them to audit you back to 1967 and see if they find anything interesting there."

"Oh come on man. Why would you do that?"

"Well I have a friend who's son Jamie is having a birthday party and for some reason, he wants you as the entertainment. Now we wouldn't want to disappoint him would we?" Lee asked.

Pretzel sighed knowing that he didn't want the IRS in his books and said "No, I wouldn't think of disappointing your friend's kid. Suddenly I am feeling a lot better. I'll be there on Saturday."

"Somehow I thought you might. Now don't think I won't know if you don't show up because I definitely will."

"I will be there. Please just keep the IRS out of this."

"Sure. Nice doing business with you. Oh and is Dean McGuire paying your bill?"

"Yes, he was the one who hired me. Why?"

"Oh nothing. Just wanted to make sure the right person got charged is all." Lee said as he smiled knowing that Amanda would know that it was him that got Pretzel and not Dean. "I'll expect to hear that Jamie had fun. Good bye now." Lee hung up.

He had owed Amanda one for helping him out and having the faith in him through this whole treason thing. He knew without a doubt that she would continue helping him as he looked for Rostov too. The least he could do was to help her with her son. He chuckled as he sat looking at the phone in his hands because he knew that Amanda probably figured he hadn't heard a word she said about Pretzel but he actually did enjoy most of her rambles. He just wasn't going to let her know that. He went into the bedroom and got a pair of sweatpants and put them on. After putting a t-shirt on, he poured himself a scotch and sat down on his couch to start thinking about how to best tackle finding Rostov. Jamie's party was 2 days away. He would let Amanda enjoy that and then call her Saturday night to arrange a meeting on Sunday to talk about enlisting her help. He needed to have some ideas before then. His freedom depended on it.

 **TBC**


	12. Chapter 12 - The Birthday Party

**Chapter 12 – The Birthday Party**

Amanda had driven her car home from the grocery store and found her family already eating dinner when she got home.

"Hi Dear. We weren't sure what time you would be home so we decided to eat without you. There's plenty though. I made meatloaf."

"Thanks Mother. Hi Boys." Amanda said as she gave both her sons a hug and kiss on the forehead. She then put some food on her plate and sat down to eat with her family.

"Amanda, is there something wrong?"

"No Mother, why do you ask?"

"Because when you are not happy, you eat very little. I think a mouse would eat more than what is on your plate."

"Oh, I'm just not really hungry. I ate earlier." Amanda couldn't believe that she lied. She hated lying to her Mother but she was really worried about Lee. She wondered if the agency would continue with the treason charges. She really wished he would let her help him. They really did make a great team. She didn't know why Lee wouldn't admit to that. As soon as Jamie's birthday party was over, she would have to try to contact him and see what was going on. Right now, she needed to concentrate on Jamie.

The evening was pleasant enough and Amanda was able to finish preparing the decorations for Jamie's party. They boys had gone up to bed and her Mother had gone to her room to read. Amanda had hoped Lee would stop by but at 9pm, she gave up and went up to her room to get some sleep.

She awoke the next morning to a scream. She wasn't sure at first where it had come from but then realized it was Jamie. She ran down the hallway to his room and immediately saw what had made him so upset. During the night, he had broken out in Chicken Pox. "Mom, do I have Chicken Pox?" Jamie asked as he was starting at himself in the mirror.

"Oh sweetheart, I'm afraid you do."

"Why did this have to happen now? My party is on Saturday. This is so unfair."

"I know, I know. Come on; let's get some calamine lotion on you before you begin scratching too badly." Amanda took care of her son and put him back to bed and then went downstairs to begin calling the parents to let them know that the party was off. Since most of them had just dealt with their own children going through chicken pox, they totally understood the frustration and how it was even worse since it was Jamie's birthday. Amanda thanked them all for their kindness and promised to tell Jamie that all his friends had wished him well. She then spent the day trying to soothe her youngest son as he was miserable. Thankfully the oatmeal baths she gave him seemed to help a little. He was able to sleep most of the day and ate a bland dinner that night before going to bed early.

Friday morning, the doorbell began ringing early and they were soon swamped with all kinds of presents for Jamie to make up for him not being able to have his party. Jamie had moved down to the couch so he could watch TV and Amanda sat with him most of the day trying to keep his spirits up. All thoughts of Lee had been put on the back burner as her son was her first priority. She had been able to keep him as comfortable as possible and the baths definitely helped. Phillip had come home on Friday afternoon with notes from many of Jamie's friends and lots of birthday cards. It seemed to cheer Jamie up a little but he still was very sad. It broke Amanda's heart to see her little boy lying there so sad. It was Dotty who decided they should go ahead with the party with just the family. She hung up all the decorations that Amanda had bought and made and then spent time cranking homemade ice cream. Amanda had frozen Jamie's cake after she finished it so Dotty took it out of the freezer and put it in the refrigerator to thaw out.

On Saturday the family woke up and Jamie seemed a little less itchy but very heartbroken about his party. Amanda and Dotty did their best to cheer him up by going ahead with the party but his heart just wasn't in it. Then the doorbell rang and in walked Pretzel the Clown and Jamie's whole face lit up. Amanda pulled Pretzel aside to find out what was going on and that was when she discovered that Lee had used some friendly persuasion to get Pretzel to show up. She couldn't believe he did that and it made her laugh thinking about it. He had listened to her when she was telling him about Jamie's party. She would have never guessed. He truly amazed her sometimes.

Pretzel was annoying but he sure did cheer up her youngest son and for that, Amanda was grateful. He entertained him for over 2 hours and by the time he left, Jamie was nothing but smiles. Amanda knew that normally Pretzel only stayed for an hour or so but he sure wasn't taking any chances of Lee making good on his threat with the IRS. When he was saying his goodbyes, Amanda pulled him aside to talk about payment and he told her that some guy named Dean had already paid the bill and since he hadn't refunded him when he had canceled, he was all set. "Now lady, you will tell your Federal Government friend that I came and made your son happy right?" Pretzel asked.

"Oh yeah. I will make sure he knows. You might want to think twice before canceling on a child in the future though."

"Oh believe me, I will. I'll let myself out." Pretzel said and headed to his car. Amanda watched him go and silently thanked Lee again for looking out for her son. Jamie's spirits were running really high and he even ate some macaroni and cheese for dinner. Amanda gave him another oatmeal bath and then sent him to bed early. Phillip and Dotty decided to go to their rooms too so Amanda sat at the kitchen table working on bills. She was trying to figure out how much of Peter she needed to rob in order to pay Paul when the phone rang.

"How was the party?"

"Oh wow, I can't thank you enough Lee."

"You don't have to thank me. I was happy to do it. That man is a scum."

"Yes he is but he sure did just make Jamie happy. My son came down with chicken pox and we had to cancel the party."

"Oh no, Amanda. I'm sorry. Is he okay?"

"Jamie? Sure, he will be. It takes about a week for it to go through a child's system. He was pretty depressed until Pretzel showed up. Of course it will be funny if Pretzel ends up with Chicken pox now since he really never has had them."

They both shared a laugh thinking about that payback.

"So why are you calling me on a Saturday night?" Amanda asked.

Lee quickly filled her in on what had happened after he and Billy dropped her off at her car. "So Amanda, would you be willing to help me out on this one?" Lee asked.

"Of course. What do I have to do?"

"Do you think you can get away tomorrow morning and meet me?"

"Sure, what time and where?"

"How about that little cafe on the corner near my apartment building. Let's say 11am?"

"That sounds okay. I'll see you at 11am" Amanda agreed.

"Thanks Amanda. I'm going to owe you a lot more than a clown if you help me find Rostov." Lee said.

"Oh, don't worry about it. We will find him. Don't you worry." Amanda said encouragingly.

They said their good nights and hung up. One way or another they had to find Rostov. Amanda couldn't imagine what would happen if they didn't. She decided she needed to get to bed. The bills could wait but she would need some sleep so that she could have all her senses when she met Lee in the morning.

 **TBC**


	13. Chapter 13 - Just Another Research Day

**Chapter 13 - Just Another Day of Research**

Lee was relieved that Amanda had agreed to meet him. He wasn't sure what help she would be but he felt that she had a right to be there. He waited until he saw her car drive up to the cafe and then walked over and held the door for her as they walked inside. They took a corner booth and both ordered coffee.

"So what is the plan?" Amanda asked.

Lee quickly filled her in on Rostov being a Professor.

"Do you think he would go back to the school where he had been teaching?" Amanda asked.

"No, I don't think so. I think he might still try to get a job with a college though. I'm thinking that we should go check out a few of the local colleges to see if they have hired anyone recently."

"Won't that take a lot of time?" Amanda asked.

"Yeah. I guess you are right." Lee said as he raked his hand through his hair. "Dam it, I just can't believe I have less than 2 weeks to find him."

Amanda touched Lee's hand and said "We will find him Lee. Have a little faith."

"I think you are going to have to have the faith this time Amanda. I'm running a little low."

"Well you said that he taught computers, Chemistry and Physics right?"

"Yeah." 

"Lee is there anything he could still want to target before he goes home to Moscow? I mean, could he be trying to score one last time before he gets out of here?" Amanda asked.

"You know, you might be onto something there. Do you have time to go to the agency with me and help me look through the computer files to see if anything sticks out?"

"Sure, I'm yours all day today." Amanda said and then blushed when she realized how that sounded. Lee smiled but didn't comment. Since Amanda's car was right there, they decided to just use it rather than going back to get Lee's. Amanda let Lee drive. As they were driving to the agency, Lee asked how Jamie was feeling. "Oh, he's getting better. He's a lot less itchy today. Hopefully by the middle of the week, most of it will be scabs and he can go on with his life." Amanda chuckled as she thought about the drama filled conversation she had with Jamie last night when he declared that his life was over because of Chicken Pox. Sometimes children could definitely play up the drama though it was a scene she would have expected more from Phillip than Jamie.

Lee and Amanda rode the rest of the way in silence. When they arrived at the agency, Lee let Amanda in and got her a guest pass. Since it was Sunday, Mrs. Marston wasn't there and Lee wasn't sure if the weekend help even knew Amanda. They took the elevator down to the bullpen and Lee found a vacant desk with a computer and logged on with his clearance for her. She quickly went to work trying to find out if there was anything big brewing behind the scenes. Lee watched for a few minutes but then went and got them both mugs of coffee. It was looking like it was going to be a long day. "Anything?" He asked as he came back to her desk.

"No, this is going to take time." Amanda stated.

"Okay, well I'm going to leave you alone and go do my own digging." Lee decided.

They worked in silence for nearly 2 hours and then Amanda said "I think I have it."

Lee immediately got up and went over to Amanda to see what she had found.

"According to the report that I'm reading, the US Government has funded a group of individuals to create a computer that can handle the launch of missiles without any human intervention. The computer has been completed and is being scheduled for formal testing a week from Tuesday."

"That could be it." Lee said. "If Rostov could get his hands on that computer, it would give the Soviets the same advantage as the US and could even potentially give them the upper hand."

"So what do we do?" Amanda asked.

"Well let's get the address of where it is being built and see if we can pay them a visit tomorrow to find out more about it."

"Okay" Amanda said as she printed off the information.

"Great!" Lee said. "Okay, I think we should call it a day today. You have a sick kid at home after all and there really isn't much more we can do today anyway."

Lee drove them both back to his apartment and they agreed to meet at 9am the next morning. Lee was feeling a little better about catching Rostov in time. With Amanda's help, he at least had something to look into. Hopefully they were on the right track.

He watched as Amanda drove away. He was glad she had agreed to help. Once he had Rostov back, he really did need to take that vacation. It had been weeks since he had gone out with any woman and he was feeling so many mixed emotions because of it. He wasn't sure he would ask Amanda to feed his fish this time though.

 **TBC**


	14. Chapter 14 - Burrito World

**Chapter 14 - Burrito World**

Amanda and Lee met in the Agency parking lot at 9am. Scotty, the Parking lot attendant came over to say hi to them both. Amanda had chastised Lee for being rude to Scotty on previous occasions so this time, he was pleasant and wished him a good day as he took over the driver's seat of Amanda's car. They drove to the address in Virginia where this super computer was being built. As they pulled into the facility's parking lot, Lee showed them his badge and they let them through. They went to the front desk and asked to speak to Commander Bell who was in charge of the project. Doug Bell soon came out to greet them and ushered them into his office.

"It is good to meet you Mr. Stetson and is this your lovely partner?" Doug said while checking out Amanda. "Hi, I'm Amanda King." Amanda said as Doug took her hand and kissed it for longer than what would be considered normal. Lee found himself getting a little upset watching Doug look Amanda over like she was a piece of meat.

"Can we focus on the task at hand Commander Bell? Mrs. King and I are on a tight schedule." Lee said while trying to distract Doug from Amanda. Amanda noticed the interest from Commander Bell and blushed. She also noticed that Lee seemed to be upset about it but she didn't really know why.

"Oh yes. Please call me Doug though. So you want to know about our special computer? Well it has been in the works for a while now. It is becoming more and more important to have resources in case of a Russian attack. Since Computers are the new wave of the world, it only made sense to create one that could handle things without having to have a human push the buttons."

"Sir, how does it work? I mean, how does it know that it should send missiles out?" Amanda asked.

"Well the technology is complicated but basically there is a tracking system that is active at all times and it is focused on the air space between the US and Russia. If the computer detects any unknown object in that air space, it will automatically dispatch a missile out to blow it up."

"Isn't that dangerous? What if the object was something harmless like a plane or hot air balloon or something?" Amanda asked.

"Well the computer has all of those objects programmed into it so that it knows those objects are safe. It also has images of missiles programmed into it so it knows that those are not safe."

"Is there a way to stop the computer once it determines that it needs to dispatch a missile?" Lee asked.

"There is but you have to know what to do and how to do it. Believe me when I tell you that this program will not be put in full operation until it has been thoroughly tested but it will hopefully resolve worrying about human error." Commander Bell offered.

"And create computer error instead" Amanda murmured.

"Oh Mrs. King, why be so negative? I expected that from your partner but a woman as lovely as you, I would have thought you would be more open to new technology." Commander Bell said with a smile.

"Oh I like new technology but this one seems to be putting a lot of trust in a machine. I'm not sure I feel all that safe knowing that." Amanda responded.

"Why don't I show it to you and show you some videos of the tests we have done and then you can have a better understanding." Doug said as he opened the door and motioned for them to follow him.

Lee and Amanda exchanged nervous glances and then Lee motioned for Amanda to go ahead of him. They followed Doug to a huge room that was full of computer equipment from floor to ceiling. They walked through the room and into a smaller room that was a little less noisy. Doug flipped on a TV screen and hit a button and soon images of missiles being blown out of the sky could be viewed. He sat down and showed them how the system worked in the simplest terms he could and then asked them if they had any questions.

"So this computer doesn't look very portable. Do you intend to keep it here then or are you moving it?" Lee asked.

"No, the computer will remain here. It doesn't need to be moved anywhere because it has access to missiles in various locations within the US. It can just as easily shoot off a missile out of California as it could out of Maine. The computer is programmed to know where the best location to shoot a missile from depending on where the target is. To our knowledge, no one else has created anything like this so the Soviets would definitely like to get their hands onto it." Doug said.

"Obviously Rostov would not steal the actual computer so he must intend to steal the program." Lee said.

"Well if he had enough time and the right equipment and knowledge, he could do that. But this is a secure building and we aren't taking its presence here lightly."

"No, I wouldn't imagine you are but Rostov is one of the best and if he wants to steal this program, he's the one that has the best chance to do it. It would be a way for him to go back to Moscow a true hero too." Lee remarked.

"How do we stop him?" Amanda asked.

"Well that's what we need to figure out. So the formal testing is a week from today?" Lee asked.

"Yes, all the top notch people from the Pentagon along with President Reagan and a whole bunch of 5 star Generals will be in this room next Tuesday while we demonstrate what she can do." Doug responded.

"Well I think that Rostov will likely plan to steal it right after that testing is done. He will want to make sure Moscow can see how important this computer is before he takes it." Lee thought out loud. "Amanda, we have a lot of work to do. Thanks again Doug for showing all of this to us. We will be in touch."

"Sure, anytime. I hope you are able to catch him. We have put months into developing this system. It would be a real tragedy for them to get their hands on it."

"I don't intend to let that happen." Lee said as he shook Doug's hand. He tried to steer Amanda away from him but Doug draped his arm around Amanda's shoulders and said "So Amanda, I don't see a ring on your finger so I'm guessing you are divorced or at least separated from your husband. A man gets mighty lonely being in this computer lab 10 hours a day. Would you do me the honor of letting me take you out to dinner tonight?"

"I'm sorry Doug. I am divorced but I have a boyfriend so I have to turn you down."

"What a shame. He is a very lucky man. I hope he realizes how lucky he is. Doug acted like he was going to kiss Amanda's neck until Lee pulled her quickly away from him and said "Well thanks again Doug but we need to get going." Lee half pushed and half pulled Amanda down the hallway. Once they were outside, Amanda twisted her body around to look at Lee and demanded "What was that for?"

"What? The man is a creep. He had his hands all over you and you weren't stopping him."

"I was handling him just fine." Amanda stated.

"It sure didn't look that way to me. The man was about to kiss you. He didn't even care that I was in the room."

"So you decided that you needed to protect me? I don't need you saving the day all the time Lee. I can take care of myself and have for many years now."

"I know that. I just thought that you could use some interference."

"Well the next time, wait until I ask for help, okay? It isn't like he is the first man who has ever hit on me."

"No, but he was a jerk. Just because he is in a position of power doesn't give him a right to put his hands all over you."

"You know Lee, sometimes I think you sound like you are jealous."

"I am not jealous. I just would hate for you to get hurt. Amanda, I'm just trying to look out for you."

"Well I do appreciate that you care Lee but I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself."

"Okay, okay, from now on, I'll let you take care of yourself. Fine."

"Fine!" Amanda said back. They had reached her car and he had helped her inside and now they rode back to the agency in silence. Lee stewed the whole way back. Why should he care? If the woman didn't want him to look after her, he wouldn't. It wasn't like she was his girlfriend or anything. No, Amanda King could take care of herself from now on. Why was he getting so protective of her anyway? He didn't treat other women like this. He had been brought up a gentleman so he was always polite with the ladies but from almost the moment he had met Amanda, he had felt the need to protect her. She wasn't like the women he dated. There was something unique about her, something special and almost innocent. He knew she wasn't totally innocent since she had been married and had 2 kids but she was different. She didn't belong to him though in any way so he was just going to have to stop getting involved. That was all there was to it.

Meanwhile Amanda sat staring out the window. This had to be one of the most complex men she had ever met. One minute he seemed like he couldn't get rid of her fast enough and in the next minute, he acted like they were a couple and that he had to protect her from all outside evils. She did appreciate that he cared and sometimes it was even nice that he was so protective but other times, it just seemed like he wanted to be in control and she was not ready for any man to control her again. If they were going to continue to work together, Lee had to learn that Amanda could handle her private life herself and he needed to stay out of it.

They arrived at the agency and Lee helped Amanda out of her car and motioned for her to come into the agency with him. Not a word was said between them and when they entered the bullpen, the other agents noticed right away that both Amanda and Lee had a look of determination on their faces. It was definitely a day to stay away from both of them. Amanda sat down at an empty desk and Lee stood behind her as they logged into the computer.

"What are we looking for?" Amanda finally broke the silence.

"I don't know, anything that will tell us where he is hiding. You know, when I was waiting for you to show up in the golf cart that day, he mentioned that his favorite thing in America was Burritos. He told me that he likes them with extra beans and to hold the sauce. I'm going to go see if the team was able to get anything more out of Delong, Jamison or Zinoviev. Can you check to see where the best Burrito places are in the DC area? I think we need to go with a picture of Rostov and see if anyone recognizes him. "

"That could be a lot of places Lee."

"I know but it is definitely a starting point for us."

"Right. Give me 30 minutes to compile a list."

"Thanks Amanda. I really do appreciate it."

Lee walked over to Billy's office and knocked on the door. Billy yelled to come in and then lightened up when he saw it was Lee. Lee quickly filled him in on everything they had found out so far and then asked if Billy had gotten any additional information.

"Well Lee, I think you and Amanda are heading in the right direction. We used truth serum on all 3 men and Zinoview seemed to be the only one who really knew anything. He fought the drug but we did manage to get him to tell us that Rostov had one more very important mission to complete before he went home and if he accomplished this, he would be the biggest hero that Russia has ever had. He mentioned how great computer technology was and how it was nice of the US to create something that Russia could steal and save themselves months of research."

"Is that all you got out of him? It definitely sounds like we are searching in the right place." Lee said.

"Yeah, he was able to block out the truth serum after saying that much like we would but at least we got that much out of him. Lee, this is really serious. If you can stop him and capture Rostov, you will go down in history as one of the best agents ever." Billy said with a smile.

"Awww, come on Billy, I already am one of the best agents." Lee laughed. Billy gave him a look and then laughed with him.

"Okay, let me go see what Amanda has come up with. Our friend Rostov mentioned he loved Burritos so we are going to go check some places out and see if anyone has seen him."

"That sounds like a good start" Billy agreed.

Lee walked out to the Bullpen and found that Amanda was just finishing up the list. She had also printed off a picture of Rostov. They gathered their coats and headed to the elevator in silence. As they reached the parking lot, Lee suggested they take his car since they would be more comfortable. They spent the afternoon riding around to all the places that Amanda had taken from the computer. They found that Rostov had been to many of them but not recently. Lee left a card with each one and asked if they could call him if he happened to come back in. When asked, Lee explained that this was official Government business and that Rostov was wanted for questioning. Each establishment quickly agreed to call.

"Well that didn't get us very far" Lee said as they left the last Burrito restaurant.

"We do have one more stop to make" Amanda said.

"Oh? Where is that?" Lee asked.

"There is a place about 20 miles from DC that is noted for having the best Burritos ever. They were even voted as #1 by the community."

"Amanda, why didn't we go to them first then?"

"I honestly didn't think he would want to drive that far away. It's worth a shot though to see if he has been out there."

"Yes, it is. Come on." Lee guided Amanda back into his car and they began the drive out to Burrito World.

"Lee, what happens if we don't find Rostov in time? I mean, would they really lock you up?"

"I don't know Amanda. I think Dirk would just to make his point clear. He's not the nicest guy in the agency. Why, are you losing faith in us already?"

"No, I just hope they would give you a trial or something. I would testify for you."

Lee smiled and said "I know you would. Yes, I would get a trial but I did break orders so they would likely find me guilty."

"Such a shame that after all you have done for your country, they would turn their back on you like this."

"Amanda, the agency takes care of itself. The people who work for it are second class. It's why I think after this case, you really need to find a real job."

"Lee!"

"No, I mean it. You have 2 small boys to worry about at home. The agency didn't even consider that when they refused to trade Rostov for you. You have to take care of yourself Amanda. Now I know this job seems to be exciting and intriguing but I'm here because I have no one waiting for me at home. You do Amanda. It would be horrible if one day, I had to go to your house and tell your Mother and Children that you wouldn't be coming home ever again."

"Lee, stop. I have thought about all of that. I get it but I feel like this whole thing was meant to be. Haven't you ever had something happen that you couldn't explain and later when you thought about it, you realized that it happened for a reason? Out of all the people you could have picked at the train station to hand that package to, you picked me. Now that has to mean something."

"Yeah, it means that I saw a woman who looked like she would do as I asked and then I didn't ever expect to see her again. For some reason, you are still here though. Amanda, seriously, at least think about what I said."

"I appreciate you caring enough to say these things to me Lee. I just don't think I'm ready to get off this train yet though."

"Damnit Amanda" Lee said as he rubbed his hand through his hair. They pulled up to Burrito World at that moment and Lee stopped the car. He hurried to the passenger side to help Amanda out of the car and then guided her inside. They walked up to the counter where there was a young kid working.

"Hi, is your boss around?" Lee asked.

"Nah, he went out to run errands. What can I get for you?"

"Actually I'm hoping you can help us." Lee said as he pulled out Rostov's picture. As he showed it to the kid, he could tell that the kid recognized him. "Ever seen this man?" Lee asked.

"Nah, never seen him before in my life" The kid said.

Amanda jumped in because she had seen his reaction too. "Are you sure. I think you should look closer."

"I told you lady, I have never seen him before. Now do you want to order or not?"

Lee looked at Amanda and shrugged. "Okay, if you are sure. We already ate though."

They walked out and headed back to Lee's car. "He knew him" Amanda said.

"Yes, he did. The question is, why didn't he admit it?"

"What do we do now?"

"I think we wait and see if we can talk to his boss."

"Okay." Amanda agreed.

They sat in silence for a while in the car while watching the front door to see if anyone looked like they might be the boss going inside.

Suddenly Lee sat up and said "Would you look at that?"

"What?" Amanda asked.

"See that guy that is acting all nervous?"

"Yeah"

"That is Ivan Ostrogorsky" Lee answered.

"Who's that?" Amanda asked.

"Ivan is Rostov's partner. We didn't even know he was still in the country. I'll bet that Rostov isn't far away. Damn, I wish I could go in without them recognizing me so I could see what is happening."

"Do you think the kid would remember me?" Amanda asked.

"Wait a minute." Lee got out and opened his trunk. He pulled out a bag of clothes that he kept there in case he had to work overnight. Inside, he found a sweater and pulled out a pair of sunglasses. "Here put this on." Lee said. Amanda pulled the sweater on and found that it was pretty loose but it fit her. He then had her put on the sunglasses. In the meantime, Amanda took her hair out of its ponytail and let it fall straight down. She also removed her headband. "I think that might get you in without them realizing that you were in there a short while ago." Lee said as he checked out the results of their handiwork.

"Okay, I'll go check it out."

"Amanda, please be careful. I don't have any way to wire you and I won't be able to be in there to save you. If you get in trouble though, I will be right outside so just yell, okay?"

"Yeah, I'll scream for you." Amanda agreed as she quickly walked up to the front door and then slowed her pace as she went inside.

She looked around the restaurant and saw that Ivan had already sat down at a table in the corner. Amanda went to the counter and ordered an iced tea. The kid showed no sign of recognizing her and handed her the drink after taking her money. She carried it to the table next to Ivan's and sat down. As she sat nursing her drink, she kept an eye on him. A few moments later, he got up and went to the counter and was handed a takeout bag. He quickly exited the restaurant and Amanda hurried out of her seat and followed him. Lee had noticed him exit and had pulled his car up to the entrance of the restaurant and yelled for Amanda to get in as she came out. She had barely enough time to close her door when Lee sped off after Ivan. Amanda hurried to put on her seat belt while holding onto the dash as Lee sped around the corner to catch up to the speeding car in front of him. As he got closer, he slowed down in hopes of making it less suspicious that he was following Ivan. They had been following him for several miles when suddenly blue lights came on behind them.

"You've got to be kidding!" Lee groaned.

"We better pull over." Amanda said.

"You know Amanda, sometimes following the rules can have consequences. Once this cop knows that I'm one of the good guys, he will understand why I didn't pull over." Lee continued to tail the speeding car. As the car neared the river, he suddenly made a sharp left turn and Lee was caught off guard and kept going straight. Suddenly another police car showed up and blocked his way.

"Damn it!" Lee said as he pounded the steering wheel.

"Okay Mister, put your hands up and keep them up so I can see them." the Police Officer said. Lee and Amanda both put their hands up and waited for the officer to walk to the car.

As he leaned down to check Lee over, Lee said "Officer, I'm a Federal agent. I have a badge in my wallet."

The officer carefully pulled the walled out of Lee's shirt pocket and found the badge.

"I'm sorry Mr. Stetson. Why were you speeding though?"

"I was tailing the partner of one of the most highly sought after Russian Operatives in this country."

By this time the other officer had arrived and walked up with his gun out and aimed at Lee.

"Put the gun down Frank" This guy's a Federal Agent. We just ruined his bust.

"Sorry about that. Is there anything we can do to help?"

"NO, I think you have helped enough." Lee said with disgust.

"Lee, be nice. Sir, could you run the plate for us and see if you find any information?" Amanda asked.

"Well that would be a great idea if either of us had thought to write down the plate." Lee said.

"Oh I memorized it." Amanda answered.

"Amanda? How could you memorize it in all that excitement?" Lee asked.

"I wish I had 3 Dollars." Amanda answered.

"I'm sure I have 3 dollars you can have Amanda but how is that going to help us?"

"The plate was IWIH3D or I Wish I had 3 Dollars." Amanda answered.

Lee shook his head. Sometimes the woman just amazed him.

"Sure, I'll go run it right now." Frank said.

As Frank was running the plate, the other officer stayed behind to talk.

"Well my name is Sam. I wish your department had told us you would be in the area. Your car definitely doesn't look like agent material."

"No? What does an agent car look like?" Lee asked.

"Oh you know, those long, black, sleek cars. Something mysterious and hard to see into."

"Well I happen to like my Porsche." Lee said.

"I'll bet it is a smooth ride and it definitely is a chick magnet. You definitely scored today. You are a very beautiful woman." Sam said as he looked at Amanda.

"This happens to be my partner and we were on a job." Lee said. He was really becoming very irritated with these two men who just stopped him from possibly being able to nail Rostov. Now this man was flirting with Amanda. Lee could definitely feel his temper beginning to get away with him. Amanda seemed oblivious as always to the man's attention of her.

At that moment, Frank returned to the car and handed Lee an address. "This is the address that is on the registration of that car." He explained.

"Thank you. Can we go now?" An irritated Lee asked.

"Yes, of course. You are free to go. If there is anything else we can do to help, please let us know." Frank responded.

"Oh yes, we would gladly help. Amanda, here's my card in case you need any special attention." Sam said as he handed her a business card.

Amanda stared at it for a few seconds and then smiled at him and said "That's okay, normally my boyfriend helps me with any personal issues I have."

Sam's smile quickly faded and Lee couldn't help but gloat a bit. He shook Frank's hand and then shifted the car to reverse so he could maneuver it back in the direction they had come from.

"Where are we going?" Amanda asked.

"Well if this address is correct, we were just a few blocks away from where Ivan is staying before we got so rudely interrupted. Let's go see if anyone is home." Lee answered. They drove in silence to a really bad looking part of town and Lee slowed the Porsche down as they neared the apartment that Frank's information had listed. He soon pulled over and turned off the car.

"What now?" Amanda asked.

"Well now we wait." Lee answered. "Maybe with any luck, Rostov is using this as a hide out. After all, he does love Burritos so it is possible that Ivan bought that meal for Rostov."

"Okay" Amanda said as she wondered how long they would have to wait. It was beginning to get late and soon her family would wonder where she was. Lee didn't notice Amanda's mood change because he was too busy focusing on the apartment in hopes of catching sight of Rostov. It sure would be nice to catch him so Lee could go on with his life. Hopefully this would be over soon. Something told him that he wouldn't be that lucky and that it would be a long afternoon.

 **TBC**


	15. Chapter 15 - Partner

**Chapter 15 - Partner**

Lee and Amanda had been sitting outside waiting to see if Rostov showed up for about an hour. They had passed most of that time barely saying anything to each other. Lee knew that it was very unusual for Amanda to be so quiet. He finally decided to break the silence.

"Are you okay Amanda?" He asked.

"Yeah, why?" She answered

"You are just very quiet. Is there something wrong?"

"Well I've been thinking."

"Oh oh" Lee teased.

"No, now listen to me. What if Ivan knew that we were following him and led us here purposely to distract us from where Rostov really is?"

"Amanda! He wouldn't have expected us to be at Burrito World."

"No, but what if he had originally intended to go where Rostov's hideout is and not here but changed his mind when he saw us tailing him?"

"So you think I can't tail a suspect?" Lee asked a little hurt.

"Now, I didn't say that. You are very good at tailing people normally but you know that this one is a little too personal so you got a little close at times. He could have figured it out."

"Oh, Amanda."

"You did say he is Rostov's partner, right?"

"Well yeah."

"And Rostov is the best that the Soviets have in espionage, right?"

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean that Ivan is." Lee said.

"Well would Rostov work with a partner who wasn't comparable to him?"

"Well at the moment, I'm working with a partner who isn't comparable to me"

"Lee! That reminds me. How come all of a sudden, you are calling me your partner?"

"Well we are working together and I need a way to introduce you. I can't go around saying 'And this is Amanda, a divorced suburban housewife that tags along with me sometimes', can I?"

"Don't be ridiculous." Amanda said in a scolding voice.

"What? I'm not being ridiculous, I'm just trying to make a point."

"No, you are being ridiculous. I think you only call me your partner when you need me to help you."

"Well there's that too." Lee said with one of his famous grins.

Amanda looked at him and pretended to be mad but soon found herself giggling at his silliness.

"Oh look Amanda, here comes Ivan."

Ivan had just exited the building and was getting into his car. As he drove away, Lee started to follow him from a distance. Ivan soon began taking several quick turns and Lee knew that Amanda was likely right about Ivan knowing they were following him. During the next sharp turn, Lee pretended to lose him and turned the Porsche back toward the apartment.

"What are you doing?" Amanda asked.

"Well he either wanted us away from the apartment for a reason or else he decided to just play with us. In either case, I think I will quickly go take a peek inside his apartment."

"Lee, that's too dangerous. We need backup."

"We can't get backup, remember? Dirk refused to let anyone else help me. So you will have to be my backup." Lee responded.

Amanda groaned. "Lee, I keep being promised training and I still haven't had any."

"Okay, okay, I promise as soon as we catch Rostov, I will get Billy to give you some tapes so you can listen and learn."

"You promise?"

"I promise." Lee said as he pulled up in the back alleyway of Ivan's apartment. "Now, I want you to stay in the car and if you see anything, you need to yell and then get out of here."

"Lee, I can't drive your car and I'm not going anywhere without you."

"What do you mean when you say you can't drive my car?" Lee asked.

"I mean that I can't drive a stick."

"Oh come on Amanda! Didn't anyone ever teach you to drive a stick?"

"My dad did once and I nearly killed his car so he said it was best if I stuck with automatics."

It was Lee's turn to groan. "Okay well if you see anyone, yell and then duck down in the car and stay down. Got it?" Lee demanded.

"Yes, I got it. Lee, please be careful."

"I always am." He said with a wink and then he got out of the car and headed to Ivan's apartment. In no time he had the lock picked and was inside.

Meanwhile, Amanda sat in the car waiting for him and after 10 minutes, decided he had been in there long enough. She got out of the car and went to the apartment and softly knocked on the door. "Lee, let me in." She said.

Lee met her at the door with his gun pointing at her expecting that she had been taken hostage. When he saw she was alone, he said "I thought I told you to wait in the car."

"I did, but you are taking too long so I thought I would come in and help."

"Okay, okay, get inside." Lee shut down door as soon as Amanda was inside.

"Have you found anything?" Amanda asked.

"Not much. I checked over the living room already and the dining room. I was just going to check out the bedroom. Why don't you look around the kitchen? You are more familiar with a kitchen anyway and will recognize something out of place."

"What am I looking for?" Amanda asked.

"Anything that seems out of place, anything that relates to Russia, I'm not sure. Hopefully you will know if you see it." Lee said vaguely. He then headed for the bedroom while Amanda went into the kitchen. It was a neatly organized kitchen with drawers full of utensils and cooking materials. Amanda looked in all the drawers and didn't find anything unusual. There was nothing on the counter tops or on the table to draw any suspicion. Just as Amanda was about to give up, she opened up the freezer. It was empty except a small locked box that was sitting in the middle on the top shelf. She opened the refrigerator and found a box that contained a bunch of files.

"Lee, I think I found something!" Amanda said.

Lee was just emerging from the bedroom and hurried over to Amanda. He hadn't found anything of interest in the bedroom at all. When he saw Amanda removing the box of files from the Refrigerator, he hurried over to help her. She motioned to the freezer and he quickly grabbed the box. In no time, he had the lock picked and the box opened. Inside, they found at least $50,000 dollars along with a list of names. Lee quickly took pictures of the list and then of the money and put everything back and handed the box back to Amanda to put back into the freezer. He then turned his attention to the files they had found in the Refrigerator. He opened up the first file and found that it was actually a file about him. It listed all his personal information including where he lived, the car he drove, his recent girlfriends and every major mission he had ever been on. Amanda was soon peering at the file too. "Wow, they know everything about you." She said.

"Yeah, no wonder they were able to find out where I lived." Lee said.

He put the file back and pulled out the second one and his heart dropped. He tried to shield it but it was too late. Amanda was not one to miss anything and immediately saw that the whole file was about her.

"Lee, they know everything about me including where I live and the information about Phillip and Jamie and even about Mother."

"I see that, Amanda. Now don't get all upset. They haven't used any of that information. I'm going to talk to Billy about setting up agents to watch your family."

"But you said that Dirk wouldn't agree to anyone else being involved."

"Well that was about me. This is about you. And Billy might be able to do this without letting Dirk know anyway. If not, we will find a safe place to send your family Amanda. It will be okay." Lee took Amanda's hand and squeezed it as a sign of support. He put the file away and took out the next one. It was a file about Professor Daly. Lee quickly took pictures of the contents and put it back. The next file was about the Super Computer so Lee took pictures of the contents so they could see how much the Soviets knew about it. The final file had just a few pages in it. Lee quickly took pictures of it without really looking through it since he was worried that Ivan could come back at any minute. They then put the box back into the fridge and made sure they didn't leave behind any sign they had been there. Lee guided Amanda out the door and they quickly made their way back to the Porsche and drove away. There was no sign of Ivan at all and Lee wondered if he had gone to Rostov in the end but he was happy that they had searched Ivan's apartment anyway. He needed to get agents over to Maplewood Drive to make sure Amanda's family was safe. It hadn't occurred to him that her family might not be safe until they found those files. He drove as quickly as he could to the agency and they made it down to the bullpen in record speed. Lee went to Billy's door and knocked and then entered without waiting for permission. Amanda followed closely behind him.

"Billy, we need to get agents over to keep an eye on Amanda's family."

"Well hello to you too Lee. Yes, I'm having a lovely afternoon, how about you?" Billy said since Lee interrupted his thoughts.

"Billy, this isn't a joking matter."

"Sir, I don't ask for much but my family is definitely in danger. I need help in protecting them." Amanda said as she stood wringing her hands.

"I'm sorry Mrs. King. I didn't mean to make light of the situation. Why don't you slow down and tell me what this all about?" Billy said gently while trying to make sure Amanda wasn't upset with him.

Amanda loved to ramble but even she told a short version of what they had been doing the past few hours and what they had found. As she finished, Billy reached for his phone and punched in some numbers. "Desmond in my office now" He barked.

Francine walked in and immediately was worried that something had gone wrong. "Are you both okay? She asked.

Billy interrupted them all to ask her if Stewy and Chip were available.

"I believe they are Billy. What's going on?"

"Mrs. King's family could be in danger. I want you to get them over to her house and tell them to keep an eye on them all. Tell them to make sure they keep on alert too because their lives could depend on it just as much."

"Okay, did something happen?" Francine asked.

Lee quickly filled her in on what they had found and Francine left Billy's office to go assign the agents.

"Thank you Sir" Amanda was relieved that Billy was able to do this for her.

"No problem. Now why don't you get that film developed so we can see what is in those other files."

"I'm on it. Amanda, I think we are done for today so you can go home and make sure everything is okay. Do you want me to follow you to make sure you get home safely?" Lee asked.

"No, I'll be fine. I'll be back first thing in the morning."

"Great, I'll see you then, Partner." Lee said with a wink.

Billy watched the exchange between the two with interest.

The comment had the effect that Lee was hoping for and caused Amanda to giggle. "Thanks Lee" Amanda said as she walked out.

"What was that all about?" Billy asked.

"Just a private joke" Lee answered with a smile. He headed down to give the film to the lab so it could be developed. It was too bad that this would be the last case that he would be working on with Amanda as he really did find it fun to work with her sometimes. He was sure that the danger to her family would give him what he needed to convince her to leave the agency though. He just needed to keep her family safe for a few more days as he really needed her help and he needed her instincts. He hated to admit it but he wasn't sure he would have thought to look in either the Freezer or the Refrigerator. He soon reached the lab and handed the film over to Fifi. Why would anyone call their child Fifi? Wasn't that more of a dog's name? Lee couldn't help but notice her incredible blonde hair and blue eyes though. She was a petite girl with lots to look at and it would definitely be fun to touch all of it too. Maybe once Rostov was back in jail, Lee would come down and see if Fifi would like to go out with him. He wouldn't mind trying to get her to howl.

 **TBC**


	16. Chapt 16 - Monday Night on Maplewood Dr

**CHAPTER 16 - Monday Night on Maplewood Drive**

Amanda made it home safely and noticed a white van parked down the street that said "Steve's Home Repairs" on the side. She was thankful that Lee had been able to convince the Agency to post agents outside her home. She hurried inside and found her family perfectly safe. Her Mother was cooking up burgers while the boys were finishing up their homework on the living room sofa. When they saw her, Jamie and Phillip immediately got up and ran to her to give her hugs.

"Mama, where have you been all day?" Philip asked.

"I told you sweetie that I have service now so it is keeping me pretty busy."

"So what animals did you take care of today?" Jamie asked.

"Oh, nothing too exciting, just a few dogs and a couple of cats along with watering all the plants in one of the houses." Amanda said though she hated lying to her children.

"Were the dogs big, mean looking dogs?" Phillip asked.

"No, they were actually very cute little lap dogs."

"Can we go with you when you go back and meet them?" Jamie asked hopefully.

"Actually their owners just got home so I won't be going back there." Amanda answered.

"Oh" Jamie said with a hint of disappointment in his voice. Amanda gave him another hug and then said she needed to go see if she could help their Grandmother with dinner.

"Amanda dear, it is good you are home. Do you know that Dean has called you 5 times so far today because he got back into town and wanted to take you out to a movie tonight?"

"He wasn't supposed to be back until tomorrow night. I'll call him after dinner." Amanda answered.

"Amanda, I don't mean to butt into your business but when there is a man who is willing to marry you even when he knows all your faults and that you have two young children that he didn't ask for, it is really silly to throw that opportunity away."

"MOTHER, I thought you weren't going to pressure me into this marriage thing anymore."

"Oh, no pressure here darling. I just wanted to make sure you realize what you could be throwing away. You aren't getting any younger dear and well Dean might find someone on one of these trips that has a little less baggage."

Amanda sighed. "Can we change the subject?" Amanda began placing plates and silverware on the table.

"Of course we can drop the subject dear. I just hope that if Dean does find someone else that you don't look back in a year and realize how good you had it."

"If Dean finds someone who makes him happy, than I will be happy for him. I try not to regret any decision I make. Now let's have dinner." Amanda offered.

The talk turned to Jamie's latest science project of building a replica of a butterfly cocoon. Meanwhile Phillip began begging again for Amanda to let him play football. Amanda had never really cared for the violence in football so she had told Phillip that she would have to think about it. She had told him that she would consider it if his grades went up. Luckily, that still had not happened. After dinner, the boys drifted outside to throw some hoops with Jimmy down the street and Dotty told Amanda that she was going to go soak in the tub. Fred had asked her to go out tomorrow night and Dotty wanted to make sure that she had properly primped before their date.

Amanda smiled as her Mother headed up the stairs and she began preparing to wash up the dinner dishes. She would have to let Lee know that her Mother would need to be followed by an agent during her date to make sure she was kept safe. Meanwhile, Amanda spent some time thinking about her day. She couldn't help but think back on the discovery of those folders. It was a horrible feeling knowing that someone would compile all that information on her and her family. She wondered who that final file had been about. Hopefully they would break this case soon. The last couple of weeks had showed her that this job was indeed dangerous. She wondered if she should quit the agency but Amanda wasn't a quitter. She had stuck with a failed marriage for way too long because she hated to feel like a failure and this job was no different. It was important to her to help make a difference, no matter how small her part was. Besides, she would miss working with Lee. She knew deep down that it was the intrigue that he produced that made it hard for her to stay away. No, Amanda King was not a quitter and as long as the agency was willing to let her help, she didn't intend to go anywhere.

As she was finishing drying the last dish, she heard a knock on her kitchen window and looked up to see Lee's face starting in at her. She quickly opened the back door and stepped outside.

"Hi" He said.

"Hi yourself. Is something wrong?"

"No, I just wanted to make sure you got home safely and that everything was okay."

"Yeah, everything is great." Amanda said with a note of sarcasm.

"What's wrong Amanda?"

"Nothing. I'm sorry Lee. I just hate that they have information on my family. I don't understand something though. If they had all this information on both you and I, why did they kidnap me and think I was the scarecrow?"

"Apparently Delong and Jamison were only given an address by Ivan and were not told what I looked like. We have now confirmed that Ivan supplied that information."

"So what now Lee?"

"Well I am waiting for the pictures to come back from the lab. Then we will know how much they know and if we might be able to locate them before the big computer reveal next week."

Amanda sighed. "Okay, well I'll see you at the agency tomorrow then?"

"Are you going to be okay?" Lee asked. She definitely did not seem her normal cheerful self.

"Oh, I'm fine. I have to call Dean now and then I think I'm going to go to bed early. It has been a rough couple of days."

"Yes it has. Give Dan my best." Lee said with a grin.

It got the desired effect because Amanda couldn't help but giggle. Lee squeezed her hand and said "It will be okay Amanda. Thanks for all your help. I'm going to check in with the agents in the van and then I'll get out of here. Make sure you lock up!"

"I will. Thanks Lee. Good night."

"Good Night Amanda."

Lee made sure Amanda locked up as she went back inside and then he walked up to the van. Chip saw him approaching on the display screen that they were using to monitor the area around Amanda's house. The van was equipped with cameras that allowed them to keep track of anyone who went within 600 yards of her house. They had already watched Scarecrow go to her backyard and waited for him to come out.

"Everyone alright?" Lee asked them.

"Yes Sir. It's been quiet so far."

"Well that could change at any minute so stay on your toes. Craig and Mel will be out in a couple of hours to relieve you."

"Thanks. We like Mrs. King. She has always been nice to us. I sure hope these people leave her alone."

"Well that's why you are here; to make sure they do."

"Yes Sir!"

Lee opened the door and left the van. As he walked to his car, he kept an eye out for anything that looked suspicious. Nothing caught his eye including the man who sat staring at him from the top of a tree house directly across the street from Amanda's house.

 **TBC**


	17. Chapter 17 - It's Picture Day

**Chapter 17 - It's Picture Day**

Amanda had called Dean before she went to bed. He wasn't very happy that she was too tired to meet him and was even less happy when Amanda told him that she had a busy week and would not have time to go out with him until the weekend. She promised to call him later in the week and explained that she really needed to go to bed. Thankfully sleep came easily for her and she was able to get a full night of rest. She got up the next morning and woke her boys up and then went downstairs to start the coffee and make pancakes for breakfast. Her sons stumbled down the stairs and quickly ate their breakfast and then headed out to wait for the bus. Dotty came downstairs a short time later and was yawning.

"Mother, you are late this morning. Are you okay?"

"Just fine Amanda. I was just thinking about my date tonight and I spent time looking through my closet to find an outfit that Fred will enjoy."

"MOTHER, Fred should be enjoying you, not the outfit."

"Oh, I'm sure he will enjoy me too dear." Dotty said with a grin.

Amanda shook her head and decided that she had heard enough. "I have to get to my first client."

"Oh, and who would that be?" Dotty asked.

"Garfield the cat" Amanda said as she walked out the door.

"Garfield? Wait! The real Garfield?" Dotty yelled after her as the front door shut on her question.

"Garfield the cat? What would be the chances that my daughter is taking care of the real Garfield? Nah, can't be" Dotty laughed to herself as she cleaned up the breakfast dishes and poured herself a cup of coffee. This service of Amanda's was definitely intriguing.

SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK

Lee arrived at the agency just minutes before Amanda. As she pulled up, he was relieved to see her. He wasn't sure if she would want to continue now that her family was in danger. He smiled at her as she got out of the car and they walked in together.

"Why don't you come down to the lab with me while I get the pictures?" Lee asked.

"Okay" Amanda said with a smile.

As they entered the lab, Lee noticed that Fifi was at the front desk. When she saw him, she broke out into a smile and said "How's my favorite secret agent?"

Lee smiled back and then noticed the look that Amanda was giving him.

"I'm just fine. Are my pictures ready?"

"Yes, they are right here. What do I get for making sure they were done so quickly?" Fifi said with an incredibly sexy voice.

Lee was fully aware that Amanda was still watching his response so he said "All part of the job. Maybe once things slow down, I can buy you lunch though."

Fifi walked around her desk and wrapped her arms around Lee's neck while her lips sought his. "That's the best you can do after all my hard work?" She asked after she had given him a kiss. She knew all about the Scarecrow's reputation and she couldn't believe he wasn't interested in her.

Lee pulled her arms away and said "I'm working right now. We will have to discuss any payment I might owe later."

He then opened the lab's door and escorted Amanda through it.

As they walked back toward the bullpen, Lee kept looking at Amanda to see her response. She looked straight ahead and didn't say a word.

"Amanda, I'm sorry about that scene back there. I don't know why she did that."

"Don't you?"

"What does that mean?" Lee asked.

"Oh come on Lee, everyone knows your reputation around here. I'm sure she will be the next notch in your bed frame."

"Amanda!"

"Can we please just go look at these pictures. Whatever you do in your private life is your business."

"I'm glad we agree." Lee said as the bullpen door was opened for both of them. They went directly to Billy's office and after knocking entered.

Billy was in the middle of eating a doughnut and quickly put it down when he realized that he had company.

"Sorry to bust in on you Billy. We just got the pictures from the lab and came in here to look at them."

"That's fine." Billy said as he took a gulp of his coffee to wash down the doughnut that he was still chewing.

Lee opened the envelope and pulled out the pictures. The first picture showed the list of names that they had found with the money in the box that was in the freezer. Lee put that picture aside so they could spend time researching it later. He then pulled out the pictures of Professor Daly's folder. The pictures showed that the folder contained Daly's address and phone number and much like the contents of Amanda's folder, it showed his personal connections including information on his wife and his three kids. Daly's accomplishments were highlighted including his work on the missile. There didn't seem to be anything of real importance in the file.

Lee shared the photos with Billy as he and Amanda went on to look at the folder that had information on the Super Computer. This folder was very complete for a computer that was supposed to be top secret. It even listed that the computer would be tested on Tuesday. It was clear that they had known about the computer since almost the very beginning.

"Lee, how did they know about this when even the agency didn't know?" Amanda asked.

"That's a good question Amanda. It sure looks like there is someone inside helping them out." Lee answered.

"And that person is giving information to Rostov." Billy continued.

Lee passed the computer file pictures on to Billy and then turned to the final folder's pictures.

"This isn't good." Lee said as he studied the pictures as Amanda tried to understand what she was looking at. "What are they?" She asked.

"These pictures show some highly classified information from the agency." Lee quickly moved the pictures out of Amanda's sight.

"You know, I could use a cup of coffee Amanda. Do you mind?" Lee asked.

"Oh, right. Need to Know. I get it. I've got a few phone calls I should make anyway." Amanda said. She realized that whatever she had been looking at was something she was not meant to see.

After she left the office, Lee showed the pictures to Billy. Billy let out a low whistle.

"Well no wonder they didn't want to save Amanda." Billy said after studying the pictures.

"Billy, if this file is correct, it could mean only one thing."

"I know. I know. Dirk is working for the Russians." Billy said remorsefully.


	18. Chapter 18 - Amanda Has a Need to Know

**Chapter 18 - Amanda Has a Need to Know**

Lee began pacing and rubbing his hand through his hair.

"I don't understand Billy. If he is a part of all of this, why didn't he push more for the trade with Amanda?"

"He couldn't Lee. It would have put up some red flags. I think he knew you would get upset and go after her and he got to sit back and make it look convincing that he was upset about it. The question is, what do we do with this information?"

"Well I think we catch Rostov first. Has he asked about our progress?"

"Yes, every day he wants a report."

"Billy, what have you told him?"

"Actually not much. I didn't want him to butt in so I have kept the information very vague and only let him know a few things."

"So he doesn't know about Ivan?"

"No and he won't. Lee, I do think Amanda has a right to know this though. She almost died due to these men. This is her case too."

Lee was still pacing and he stopped and looked at Billy as his hand swept through his hair again. He found himself nodding in agreement. Amanda did deserve to know.

"Thanks Billy. I think I'll go ask her to take a ride with me and I'll tell her what is in that file."

"Good idea."

"Can you give Francine that list of names and have her check it to see if there is anyone of interest on it?"

"I'm on it!" Billy said. "Oh and Lee, I'm sorry I wasn't more supportive about helping you when Mrs. King was kidnapped."

"Your hands were tied. I understood Billy."

"Well I'm glad that you broke the rules and saved her. I'm not sure any of us could have lived with ourselves if ..."

"I know Billy. I try not to think about it. I'm glad it worked out. When this case is over, I really want you to help me convince her that the agency is not for her though. It bothers me that she has 2 small children at home that she could leave without a mother."

"Lee, I'm not sure anything that is said is going to convince her. She has a knack for this job and she knows it. Let's catch Rostov and nail Dirk and then we can talk about it some more."

"Okay, we'll be back in a couple of hours." Lee said as he walked out of Billy's office.

"Amanda? I need to go check out a lead, can you come with me?" Lee asked.

"Of course."

They walked out to Lee's car together and he helped her inside. Lee got in and headed the Porsche toward the downtown park. As they arrived, Lee got out and helped Amanda out of the car. He held his hand out for hers, smiled and said "Walk with me?" She looked at his hand and he said "It will look more natural if we walk hand and hand so as to not draw attention from anyone."

"Okay. Lee, why are we here?"

"I want to talk to you about what we found in that folder."

"I thought that it was a need to know and I didn't need to know." Amanda said.

"Well Billy agreed that since it involves you, you have a right to know about this."

"Okay, I'm listening."

"Let's sit down at the picnic table" Lee motioned to a picnic table that was in the open so he could make sure they weren't being listened to.

After they were seated across from each other, Lee said "I don't think you had the pleasure of meeting Dirk Fredericks. He is an investigator in the Internal Affairs Division of the Agency."

"No, you haven't introduced me to him."

"Well Dirk is the man who helped make the decision not to trade you for Rostov and he's also the one who helped set up this little exercise to try to get Rostov back."

"Okay, so why are we talking about him now?"

"Well according to the information that we found in that file, Dirk isn't quite what he seems."

Amanda looked at Lee with frustration. Sometimes the man just walked all around the subject instead of getting to the point.

"Meaning what?"

"Meaning, that the file we found proves that Dirk is actually a Russian operative"

"Oh My Gosh, how does it prove it?"

"There are pictures of Dirk standing with Rostov and there is even a picture showing him being awarded by Andropov with some sort of medal. There are other pictures of him in groups of important Russian leaders. Looking closer at the other pictures, it appears that Dirk's real name is actually Adrik Friedkin. We found some pictures of his identification in the folder which show pictures of Dirk but he is listed as Adrik."

"Why does Ivan have a folder that has this information?"

"Well I'm not sure but my guess is to hold it over Dirk's head in case he decided to try to defect or double-cross them."

"Couldn't Dirk just say he was on assignment and that these pictures don't prove anything?"

Lee nodded his head. "Yes, he could say that but hopefully when we catch up with Rostov, we will have him singing Dirk's name out loud and clear and it will be Adrik; not Dirk."

"So what do we do now?"

"Well I am going back to Ivan's apartment and stake it out. I still think he is the key to lead me to Rostov."

"What do you want me to do?"

"Amanda, I think it is time for you to step out of this. It's getting too dangerous now."

"No, you need me"

"Amanda!"

"No, I know you don't want to admit it, but you need me. So if you are going to go stake out Ivan's apartment than I'm going with you. If you don't let me go with you, then I will find something else to do and you know that I sometimes get into trouble when I go off on my own."

"Oh yes, you 'sometimes' get into trouble." Lee sighed "Okay, you win. Come on, let's go."

Lee helped Amanda back into his car and then got in and headed back to Ivan's apartment. They were both lost in their thoughts on the ride over and not much was said between them. As they pulled into the area, Amanda sat straight up so she could get a better look. There was a police car blocking their way and an ambulance with lights on sitting outside Ivan's apartment building. Lee parked the car and told Amanda to stay put but of course she didn't listen and got out of the car too and hurried to catch up with him. Lee reached the police officer just before Amanda and showed his badge. "What happened here?" Lee asked.

"A man was shot and killed about 30 minutes ago. The neighbors called it in. They said they heard arguing and then gunshots. They saw a blonde haired man run down the street and get into a sporty looking car while this man came stumbling out of the apartment holding his chest while covered in blood. Before we could get here, he fell and we found him dead when we arrived." The body still lay outside and there was blood pooled up all around it. No one had bothered to cover it up so it was obvious that parts of the man's body had come out from the force of the gunshot. It was not a pretty scene to behold

Lee looked at Amanda and saw that she was looking at the body and seemed to be in a bit of a trance. He squeezed her hand reassuringly and then looked back at the officer and asked if he knew who the man was even though he already knew the answer. The officer said that the id in the man's shirt said his name was Ivan Ostrogorsky. Lee thanked the officer and guided Amanda back to the car. After they were inside, he turned to her and asked "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Do you think Rostov killed him?"

"I'm not sure. If he did, I wonder if he is cleaning up any loose ends here. If so, Dirk might be on the short list for the same ending."

"Oh My Gosh, you think Rostov would kill Dirk?"

"He's Russian. I wouldn't put anything past him."

"Lee, you realize that this means that we just lost our lead for finding Rostov."

"I know Amanda, I know."

 **TBC**


	19. Chapter 19 - Discussion

**Chapter 19 - Discussion**

They rode back to the agency in silence; both lost in their own thoughts. Neither of them seemed to be in a hurry to tell Billy what they had just found. Even Mrs. Marston noticed that they were very quiet in the elevator as they rode down to the Bullpen. She hoped her favorite agent and his sidekick were okay. She decided that she would run to the store during lunch and get some of those chocolates that Francine liked so much and find out what was going on.

When they entered the bullpen, Amanda and Lee headed straight for Billy's office. Francine saw them and hurried after them. Once they were all inside, Lee lowered the blinds and filled them in on the death of Ivan. Amanda still seemed to be pretty shook up and Billy watched her while Lee gave them the news.

"Mrs. King, are you okay?"

Amanda shook her head as if she was trying to come out of a trance and looked at Billy for a second before answering.

"Yes Sir. There was just so much blood. I had never seen that much blood before. If Rostov killed his own partner, well I'm just in shock. How do you kill someone who has been by your side for so long?"

"There are many reasons why people do this sort of thing. We can't take it personally and we need to not let it bother us." Billy gently explained.

"I know that Sir but it just took me by surprise. I'm okay."

"That's good. Scarecrow needs you right now. Can you continue?"

"Oh yes Sir, I'll be fine. Thanks."

Francine couldn't help but roll her eyes at Amanda. This was why she should be out there instead of Amanda. Amanda would never be agency material. She took everything too personally. She was so wrapped up in those thoughts that she almost forgot her news.

"Well I do have some good information if we are done Coddling Amanda." Francine butted in.

"FRANCINE!" Lee and Billy both said at once. "Just tell us your news. You don't need to add in mean comments along the way." Billy added.

"Well yes, okay. Well it seems that the list you found in the freezer is at least a partial list of Soviet operatives in this country. We were able to identify each name on the list and some of them are pretty well connected to Rostov while others are just dangerous and have been sought by our country for years for versus secrets being smuggled out."

"What good does a list of operatives that we already know do us?" Lee asked.

"Well each name has a code word next to it. We believe the code words signify each of their locations. Crypto is working on it now."

"Good work Francine, let us know as soon as Crypto comes up with anything." Billy said.

"Will do. In the meantime, if you are done with me, I have a hair appointment to get to."

"Oh, we wouldn't want to interrupt your busy schedule Francine" Lee said in a mocking voice.

Billy chuckled as Francine left his office.

"So where do you go from here?" Billy asked.

"I'm not sure. I doubt Rostov will go near the Burrito place again right now. I think I'm going to go find TP and see if he has heard anything on the street."

"Sir, if it is okay, I think I would like to go home to my family for the afternoon." Amanda asked Billy.

"That would be fine Mrs. King. Take some time to think about things. Everything will be okay and your house is still under surveillance so you are perfectly safe there."

"Thank you sir. I'll be back early tomorrow morning. Good luck with TP, Lee"

"Oh and Sir, my Mother has a date tonight. Would it be too much to ask for an additional agent to stay with her and make sure she is safe while she is out of the house?"

"Consider it done Mrs. King." Billy said with a reassuring smile.

"Thank you Sir. I do appreciate it."

Amanda got up and left the office.

"Is she going to be okay?" Billy asked.

"I don't know Billy. She took this one pretty hard. I've seen much worse but I'm sure Amanda hasn't ever see anyone killed before. At least not like this man was. Rostov made sure he was dead."

"Okay, well go find him. This man needs to be off the streets."

"I couldn't agree more." Lee said as he exited Billy's office.

 **TBC**


	20. Chapter 20 - Lee's Bad Day

**Chapter 20 - Lee's Bad Day**

As Amanda headed for home, Lee headed out to see if he could find TP. It was a nice day so logic told him that he would find TP at the park. His logic won out again as Lee circled the park and could see TP sitting at one of the park picnic tables. Lee parked the Porsche and walked to where TP was. He seemed to be engrossed in a puzzle book but as Lee got closer he said "Lee my boy. Great to see you. Take a seat."

"Hey TP. Am I interrupting you?"

"No, I recently was introduced to these logic puzzles and find them fascinating. Have you ever done one?"

"No TP, I can't say that I have."

"Well I can't seem to get enough of them. Anyway, I heard that you have had some excitement. Word on the street is that you first caught Rostov and then you set him free. Is there something you need to tell me Lee?"

"Awww, TP, I had to let him go. They kidnapped Amanda and held her for the exchange. They thought they were kidnapping me though."

"I see. So you are developing a soft spot for Amanda are you?"

"TP! They were going to kill her but they thought they were going to kill me. Well I told you that she has 2 small children at home. I couldn't let that happen, could I?"

"No, you are right Lee; you couldn't do that. So is she okay now?"

"Yes, though she just witnessed her first real murder today so she is a bit shaken up."

"OH? Who got murdered?" TP asked.

"Rostov's partner, Ivan."

"You don't say? That makes sense though."

"How so?"

"Well I have heard that Ivan was in the middle of a major double cross of Rostov."

"How Major?" Lee asked.

"I heard that he had a deal going with the East Germans. A pretty interesting deal too."

"Oh? What kind of deal?"

"Well I'm sure you know that Rostov is out to steal the super computer?"

"Yes, that is what we have determined."

"Well Ivan decided that he could be a very wealthy man if he could deliver the Super Computer, Rostov and ummm, well YOU Scarecrow to the East Germans."

"What? Are you telling me that he intended to kidnap both me and Rostov."

"That's what the word on the street is. I would guess that just because he is dead, it won't make the East Germans less interested either."

Lee got up and began pacing while rubbing his two fingers together.

"Any idea how he intends to get us out of the country?"

"There are some German diplomats who are visiting the country to learn more about our developments on Cancer research. The plan is to ship you both back in crates on the plane when it leaves for Germany."

"TP, where do I find Rostov?"

"Well Lee my boy, I always have found that most of the time we look for something missing in all the wrong places. Most of the time, the object that we seek is usually right in front of us."

"What does that mean?"

"It means that he isn't hiding. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't know you are here with me today. He has gotten a huge ego over the years and he thinks that he can't be caught so he has grown careless. Very careless."

"So you think he is following me?"

"It could be. There is a good chance that as he is following you, the East Germans are following both of you. Be careful Lee. Rostov is dangerous. He didn't get his reputation by being a good guy."

"Thanks TP. I think. I guess I'll go check on Amanda."

"Oh, how is that lovely partner of yours? I have heard lots of nice things on the street about her. I can't believe you still haven't introduced us."

"That's exactly why this will be her last case. She is drawing too much attention and she can't afford to be put in danger all the time like this."

"She seems to be perfectly safe with you Lee. I heard that she has great instincts and has helped you out quite a bit."

"Yeah" Lee said as he swiped his hand through his hair.

"Well TP, I gotta go. Let me know if you hear where Rostov is, huh?"

"Will do Lee. Oh and make sure you say hi to Mrs. King for me, okay?"

"Sure TP."

Lee got up from the picnic table and began walking to his car. He couldn't help but glance around him to see if he was being watch though. It was unsettling to know that this whole time, he likely had been being watched. He wondered what part in all of this that Dirk played. At the moment, the most important thing was to go check on Amanda. Lee knew that he wouldn't be able to concentrate on anything else until he made sure she was safe. It seemed that keeping her safe was becoming a full time job, a job that Lee Stetson had definitely not signed up for. In some ways, it felt good to be needed though. Lee was so absorbed in his thoughts that he never saw the red car that purposely swerved and smashed into the side of his Porsche. As Lee tried to keep control of his car, a tire popped and he couldn't stop the car from spinning out as he smashed into a truck head on. Lee's head hit the steering wheel and he was knocked out. The driver in the red car watched the scene for a few minutes to make sure Lee wasn't moving and then he slowly backed his car out from the scene and slowly drove away.

 **TBC**

 **A/N: I just wanted to give a huge thanks and acknowledgement to Pam and Cindy for the wonderful comments made on FB about my stories. It really means a lot to me. Also, another huge thanks goes to AlaskaFan at the Forums for also plugging my Holiday Stories. It is nice to know that my work is appreciated. The stats tell me that people are reading but since people don't choose to review, it is never easy to know if they are enjoying what they read or not. I'm glad a few people like my format and my original stories. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.**


	21. Chapter 21 - The Accident

**Chapter 21 - The Accident**

Lee awoke in the hospital with a very bad headache and he felt like he had been hit by a truck. As his eyes focused on his whereabouts, he remembered the accident. His hand went to his head where he found a bandage covering his forehead.

"Well look who is alive?" Francine said as he looked over at her sitting by his bed.

"How long have I been here?"

"Just a few hours. They called the agency just after the ambulance picked you up. Billy sent me over to make sure you were okay. What happened Lee?"

Lee quickly filled Francine in on the accident. "Wow, what bad timing" Francine said.

"No, I don't think it was just that. I think it was planned." Lee then told her about his talk with TP.

"Lee if the East Germans intend to kidnap you, then we have to get you some security."

"Dirk will never agree to that, you know that as well as I do."

Francine let out a big sigh. "So what do we do?"

"YOU will go back to the agency as soon as you help me get out of this hell hole. I need to go check on Amanda. Oh my God, my car! What about my car?"

"I'm sorry Lee, it got quite a bit of damage. It's in the repair shop right now. The good news is that Leatherneck says he can fix it and he already delivered a loaner for you that is waiting in the hospital parking lot."

It was Lee's turn to sigh. "Thanks Francine. Now can we get out of here?"

"I'll get a nurse to begin your discharge."

It took nearly 45 minutes to get the discharge done but Lee finally found himself free to leave and walked out to the parking lot. Francine pointed to the orange VW bug that Leatherneck had given to Lee as a loaner.

"You can't be serious. He expects me to drive THAT!"

"Well it's either that or walk."

"Could this day get any worse?" Lee asked.

"I find that it is never a good idea to invite trouble by asking that question." Francine suggested.

Lee agreed and then went to the car and squished his long legs into it. "The Keys Francine?"

Francine was having a hard time to keep from laughing at the image of Lee in this tiny car. She quickly handed him the keys and then headed to her own car where she was finally able to bust out laughing. Lee ignored her as he squealed out of the parking lot. The most important thing right now was to go check on Amanda.

 **TBC**


	22. Chapter 22 - The Lurker

**Chapter 22 - The Lurker**

The man couldn't believe that no one had noticed him in the tree house after all this time. He had followed her when she left earlier that day to work with that agent. In the end, they had ended up down at Ivan's apartment and found him dead. He was shocked at her reaction. For being such a famed professional, she seemed to take Ivan's death pretty hard. Maybe she thought that they lost some valuable information and that was why she acted that way. The man was shocked when she left the agency so early in the day and headed home. He had a good view from where he sat with his binoculars. She had gone home and spent some time talking to the older woman in the house and then had gone up and appeared to be taking a bath. He wished that he could just go take care of her. Why did he have to wait? This seemed stupid to wait when she was right there and he could so easily just grab her now? It would be a few days before she would be on the plane but he could have fun with her in the meantime. She was a beautiful woman. He wouldn't mind seeing if her reputation in bed was as good as he had heard. He bet that she was a wild woman when she was angry too and he was sure she would be angry about being kidnapped. He smiled thinking about what fun he could have and then scowled when he remembered how he had been told "hands off." No one ever let him have any fun. He was the one who got stuck watching her from outside in the cold. He couldn't even leave for a hot cup of coffee because she might leave in the meantime and he would be in trouble for letting her go freely. He really hated the way they treated him. Someday he would show them. He was just as important as the likes of Rostov. In the end, Rostov would be treated better than him though once he was captured. They were so sure that they could convince him that it was worth leaving Russia to join them that the word was to use a soft touch on him. Scarecrow on the other hand would never agree to join them. No, Scarecrow would need a much tighter hand and the man wanted to be that hand but he knew they would not allow it. Oh but she was beautiful. Oh Damn, there's that stupid partner of hers. That could mean only one thing, his associate did not take care of him like they discussed. Damn it! He knew he should have done the car accident himself but Hans was determined he could handle it. Now this man would still be around to help protect Scarecrow. There was nothing he could do about it right now other than to make sure he wasn't seen so he slunk lower into the Tree House.

 **TBC**


	23. Chapter 23 - Checking In

**Chapter 23 - Checking In**

Amanda had arrived home that afternoon and found her Mother in the kitchen preparing a casserole for dinner. She explained that her last pet client had come home early so Amanda had been able to leave early herself. She told her Mother that she wasn't feeling that well and was going upstairs to soak in the tub. She had never finished that novel about Victoria Greenwich so she grabbed it and after drawing a nice hot bath full of bubbles, she proceeded to get lost in her fantasy world. After about an hour, the water began to turn cold so Amanda got out and wrapped herself in a towel and went to her room. She selected a pair of comfortable sweats along with her pink Georgetown sweatshirt and put the clothes on. She left her hair down so it could dry naturally but put a head band on to keep it out of her eyes. Phillip would be home from school any minute. She checked on Jamie who was sleeping in his room before she went downstairs to wait for Phillip. Jamie's Chicken Pox had almost run its course and he would be able to go back to school soon.

Her Mother wasn't downstairs so Amanda guessed that she had gone to her room to rest. The kitchen had been cleaned and the casserole was cooking with a timer saying it would be done in 30 minutes. Amanda went to the kitchen sink to get a glass of water and looked out just as Lee popped up from her bushes. He motioned for her to come outside so she did.

As she opened the back door and stepped outside, she noticed that he had a bandage on his forehead.

"Oh my Gosh, what happened to you?" She asked.

"I was in a little car accident."

"Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine Amanda. Are you okay? Has anything happened while you have been home?"

"No, everything is fine here. I don't think they care about me after all."

"Well let's hope not. Are you feeling better?"

"Yes, I took a nice hot bath and it helped work out the tension I was feeling."

Lee's mind wandered for just a second about Amanda being in a tub filled with bubbles and he immediately snapped himself out of his thoughts. He really needed to get out to a night club and find some new blood as soon as Rostov was back behind bars.

"Are you sure you are okay Lee? That looks pretty nasty."

"Yeah, I just hit my head on the steering wheel."

"Was it an accident or do you think it was done on purpose?"

"I don't know but if it wasn't done on purpose, I don't know why the driver didn't stop and make sure I was okay. If it was done on purpose, I'm surprised he didn't make sure that the job was done correctly unless something spooked him."

"Did you find out anything new from TP?"

Lee hesitated and then decided Amanda needed to know so he told her about the double cross and how the East Germans might be trying to kidnap him. He also told her about TP's theory that Rostov could be right out in the open.

"Oh my Gosh Lee! This just keeps getting more dangerous all the time."

"Yes, I know." He said as he looked at her knowingly.

"I didn't say I was backing out though." Amanda said in a determined voice. "Oh no, it takes more than that to scare Amanda King. Yes siree."

He couldn't help but smile at her determination. She was definitely a very brave woman.

"Okay." He said gently. "Promise me that you will stay in tonight and make sure you keep all these doors locked. The agents are right outside if you need them. Get some sleep tonight. Tomorrow is Wednesday which doesn't give us much longer to find him."

"Okay Lee. Shouldn't you be the one who is careful though? Who is protecting you?" Amanda asked.

Lee smiled his award winning smile and said "Amanda, I'm one of the best. I can take care of myself."

"Yes, I can see that" She said as she fingered the bandage on his head as Lee winced from the pain of it being touched.

"Okay, you made your point. I'll be careful too. Do you want me to swing by in the morning and pick you up?"

"That would be nice Lee. Any idea yet where we go from here?" Amanda asked.

"No, not really but I think we might just ride around and visit some people and see if we spot him out and about."

"Okay, I'll see you in the morning." Amanda watched Lee head out of her backyard.

As he walked to the loaner car, he realized that there was no way that both he and Amanda were going to fit into this car. They would have to use Amanda's car tomorrow. The agency van was parked around the corner so Lee went over to check in with the men.

"It's Scarecrow" Lee said as he quietly knocked on the door. Chip's face showed up in the small security window and then he let Lee in.

"Any sign of trouble?" Lee asked.

"No, everything is quiet here. Looks like someone got you good though." Stewy said.

"Just a small car accident." Lee said.

"Oh is that why you are driving around in the flower mobile?" Chip asked.

"If you both don't want to find yourself with the worse job assignments in the department for the next month, I would suggest you both drop this." Lee stated.

"Okay, okay. We're just teasing you." Stewy said. "It's dropped."

"Well anyway, just keep an eye on them tonight. Amanda's Mother is going out on a date so I'll have another agent tail her. That will leave Amanda home with two small boys so I want you to stay alert and watch that house. Got it?"

"Yeah, we got it."

"Okay then, good night." Lee said as he exited the van. He shoved his body into the tiny Bug and headed back to his apartment. He needed to go have some words with Leatherneck about this little joke of a car. For now, they would have to use Amanda's car.

The man in the Tree House smiled as he watched Lee drive away. He knew that it meant that Amanda would be left unguarded except for the two agents for the night. Maybe he should make his move tonight. Just as his body was beginning to respond to those thoughts, he remembered his boss's words "Hands Off." Well time would tell how much longer he was going to obey those words.

 **TBC**


	24. Chapter 24 - In the Shadows

**Chapter 24 - In the Shadows**

Lee arrived back at his apartment and immediately loosened his tie. What a long day it had been. He went to the bar and poured himself a nice sized glass of scotch and then sat down on the couch to reflect on the day. He was thankful that Amanda had not been in the car with him during the accident. Why did someone hit him if they wanted to kidnap him? It didn't make any sense. Maybe the accident was just a coincidence. He picked up the phone and called Francine at home.

"Hi Francine, it's Lee. Any luck with that list?"

"Hi Lee. We definitely are finding some interesting things with the list. It seems that there are several Soviet operatives operating out of the DC area."

"Didn't we already know that?"

"Well we did but now we know which ones. For instance, I'm sure you know the name of Larisa Yudin."

"Isn't she the one who seduced several of men in the US Military and obtained military secrets for years before anyone caught on to what she was doing?"

"That's the one. Guess what? She is actually right here in DC right now and word has it that she is a free agent. She apparently is letting everyone know that she is available for the right price."

"Great, just what we need. Another free agent to do anyone's bidding."

"Yeah, I know. It gets scarier every day. That reminds me, this whole Rostov thing is pretty scary too so please be careful."

"I always am." Lee said as he said good night to Francine and hung up the phone. What a rat's nest this whole thing seemed to be. He took another long sip of his drink and then turned on the TV to try to relax. It would be awhile before sleep would find him.

SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK

Amanda was very worried about her Mother but she couldn't tell her that. She was relieved when she saw the car parked outside that appeared to be the agent that would be tailing her Mother while she was on her date. Her Mother kissed her good night and told her not to wait up as Fred pulled up and honked his car horn. She watched her Mother as she nearly sailed down the porch steps to the waiting car. It made her smile that her Mother was so happy even through her fears. Her Mother would be fine; the agency would make sure of it. As she watched the agency car follow Fred's car, it made her feel a little less worried and she walked back into the living room and sat down on the sofa. She found herself thinking again about the past few days and then remembering the view of the dead body with organs strewed across the ground. How could anyone kill someone so violently? It all was so perplexing. Maybe Lee was right and she had no business being involved with the agency. Maybe it would be best if she resigned. Wait? Could you resign if you were only a part time civilian who helped out now and then? She would have to check into that. She decided that she might as well work on paying some bills so she got up and went to the kitchen to use the kitchen table. There was a noise near her back door. She hadn't expected Lee to come back again but maybe he forgot something. She went to the back door and opened it while calling out Lee's name. There wasn't any answer though and after a minute, Amanda decided that it must have been the Ferguson's dog in the back yard again. She noticed that there was a plant pot knocked over so she picked it up and put it back where her Mother originally had it. Maybe it was just the wind. She closed the back door and locked it. She shrugged as she went back to working on her bills. She wanted to try to stay up and wait for her Mother to get home so that she knew she was safe. She wondered if her Mother intended to come home though.

In the shadows, the man slipped back behind a tree. That was a close call. He had just wanted to be able to look at her. She was so beautiful and he loved looking at her. He hadn't meant to knock over the woman's flower pot. Thankfully it hadn't broken. He would have loved to have pushed his way into her house. He would wrap his hand into her hair so he could control her as his other hand swept down her body and pulled her hips into his so she could feel his desire for her. He could almost picture her struggling against him as he convinced her that she wanted him as much as he wanted her. He knew that she would soon know what it was like to be with a real man and would give in to him. That partner of hers seemed so lame and didn't know how to handle a lady like this. He did though, he could tame her just enough so they could have incredible sex together but he would leave her wild spirit in tact because that part excited him most of all. He could almost taste her lips as he stood thinking about it but then the memory of his last communication with the boss came back to him again. "HANDS OFF". It just wasn't fair. He was probably being deprived just because the boss wanted to enjoy her himself. It made him angry thinking about it and he decided that maybe it was time to take the boss out so that he could move up the ladder. He was sure that Erich Honecker didn't get to be powerful by listening to some twit tell him what he could or couldn't do. He sure wasn't going to take much more of it. He would possess this woman yet and no one would stop him. For now, he slunk back to the tree house. He would need to take out the agency men before he made his move and it was too soon to do that. It wouldn't be much longer now. She would be his and he would enjoy every minute of their time together before he killed her.

 **TBC**


	25. Chapter 25 - Getting to Know Paul

**Chapter 25 - Getting to Know Paul**

Lee pulled along the curb of Maplewood Drive at 8:30am and shut off the VW Bug to wait for Amanda to come out. During his sleepless night, he had decided that their first stop today would be back to Burrito World. He wanted to try to talk to the manager there this time to see if he could get any new information. He planned to have Amanda ask some of the customers if they recognized Rostov too.

At exactly 9am, Amanda emerged from her house and began looking around for the Porsche. Lee walked got out and walked over to her.

"Lee, what are you doing in that car?" She asked.

"Remember I told you about my car accident? Well my Porsche is in the shop. This was the loaner car that Leatherneck decided to give me. It's his idea of a joke. Can we take your car?"

"Sure, do you want to drive?"

"Yeah, if you don't mind."

Lee helped her into the car and then got into the driver's side. He glanced over and noticed that she seemed upset.

"What's wrong Are you okay with this?" He asked.

"What? Oh yes, using my car is fine. That's not my problem. The problem is my Mother."

"She wouldn't want us using your car?" Lee asked trying to lighten the mood.

Amanda ignored him and said "She had that date last night and she didn't come home. Now I knew there was a chance she wouldn't come home but since I'm in the middle of this case, I don't know if she didn't come home because she didn't mean to come home or if she didn't come home because she couldn't come home. Now, she told me not to wait up for her but I really don't know if I should be worried or not. Should I be?"

"Wait here." Lee said as he went over to the van to talk to the agents there. In no time, they were able to contact the agent who had tailed Dotty and found out that she had indeed gone home with her date and they had not yet left his house.

Lee went back to the car and got in. He couldn't help smiling as he told Amanda that she didn't need to worry about her Mother because he was sure she was smiling this morning.

Amanda shielded her blush with her hand and said "Can we please get out of here."

Lee started the car and headed to Burrito World. Along the way, he explained his plan to her.

When they arrived at Burrito World, they went inside and found the same kid at the counter. He was doodling on paper and totally ignored them. Lee cleared his throat and the kid looked up.

"What do you want?" He asked.

"My friend and I would like a breakfast burrito please."

The kid sighed and put his paper away and then typed the order into the cash register.

"That will be $5.79." He told Lee. Lee gave him a $10.00 bill and waited for his change.

"Any chance the manager is around this morning?" Lee asked.

The kid immediately got defensive and said "Mister, what's your problem? Your burrito will be out in a just a few minutes."

Amanda jumped in and said "Oh, we aren't complaining. In fact, we wanted to talk to him about what a star employee you are."

"Really? Well Jerry should be back shortly. He just stepped out to get himself a cup of coffee. He hates the stuff that we serve."

"Great, well we'll wait for him then." Lee said.

They took a booth off to the side and waited for their Burrito. As soon as it was ready, the kid rushed it right over to them. He was all smiles now and even told Lee that his tie matched his suit perfectly.

"Thanks son. I appreciate the compliment." Lee said.

"Maybe someday I'll work in a better place so that I have to wear a tie but Dad got me this job so for now I have to stay here."

"Does you father own this place?" Amanda asked.

"Nah, he just likes using it as a meeting place for his friends."

"Meeting place? So he's part of a group?"

"Not really a group. He says that these are people he deals with in his job."

Lee wanted to stop the conversation but Amanda kept it going.

"So why does he need you here? Couldn't he meet them here anyway?"

"Yeah, I guess he could but he meets them here after hours and I am allowed to let them have access. Otherwise, Jerry would have to make a special point of staying here for them"

"So they meet here for dinner after hours?"

"No, they meet here to discuss things."

Lee couldn't help but listen into the conversation but he let Amanda continue the questioning since the kid seemed to trust her.

"What kind of things?" Amanda asked.

"Oh, I don't know. Dad always tells me to leave them alone but I hear them talking sometimes. It's all secret stuff. The other night they were here and they were discussing some sort of computer program."

Lee couldn't keep quiet any longer. "Computer program? What kind of computer program?"

"I'm not sure. All I know is that apparently other countries would like to get their hands on it. Dad was telling Mr. Smith that they would both be rich if this mission was a success."

"Mr. Smith? Who's that?"

"You know him; he is in the picture you asked me about a couple of days ago."

Lee looked at Amanda and then back at the kid "So you remember us?"

"Sure, I only pretend to be stupid so people leave me alone."

Amanda said gently "Why didn't you tell us that you knew the man?"

"Dad always tells me to stay quiet about Mr. Smith. They have been business associates for a long time and I guess in his line of work, he could get killed if the wrong people found him. Dad says that Mr. Smith has the more dangerous job."

Amanda decided to continue to push it and asked "What does your Dad do for work?"

"He's some big shot in the Government."

"Do you know what his job title is? Lee asked.

"Nah, he doesn't talk much about what he does. It's all a big secret."

At that moment a tall dark haired man entered the restaurant carrying a cup of coffee. "What's going on Paul?" he asked as he saw the kid talking to Lee and Amanda.

Amanda jumped in and said "Oh this young man was just making sure we were happy with the service here. Are you the manager; Jerry?"

"I sure am." Jerry responded.

"Great" Lee said. "Can we have a word with you in your office?"

"I guess so. Come with me."

Lee and Amanda followed Jerry into a small but cozy corner office and closed the door.

"What can I do for you?"

Lee showed Jerry his badge. Jerry studied it for a minute and then said "You must work with Dirk. Is he okay?"

"Dirk? You know Dirk?" Lee asked.

"Of course, that's his son Paul that you were just talking to."

Lee and Amanda looked at each other and Amanda mouthed the words "Dirk". It was starting to make a little sense now.

 **TBC**


	26. Chapter 26 - Meeting Billy

**Chapter 26 - Meeting Billy**

Jerry looked from Amanda to Lee and then said "I thought you knew that was Dirk's son and that was why you were talking to him."

Amanda opened her purse and pulled out Rostov's picture and showed it to Jerry.

"Do you know this man?" she asked.

"Sure I do. That's Mr. Smith. He comes by quite often. He was introduced to me as a cousin of Dirk's."

"Paul told us that they hold meetings after hours here. Have you ever attended those meetings?"

"No, I was just told that they are some secret Government meeting and that they can't use the office because there are too many breaches in security there." Jerry explained.

"How did you originally meet Dirk?" Lee asked.

"A few years back I had a real problem here with some death threats being left on my front door. I contacted the police and they stopped by but told me that they really couldn't do anything until something actually happened. It continued for a few weeks and then I started finding vandalism. It was small at first, just some paint on the outside walls and messages written across my front door but then one night, they smashed out windows and came inside and smashed up the place. I was upset and ready to close the place down. Dirk happened to be in the restaurant that next day as I was telling some regulars about it. I told them that I had decided to try to sell the place and if that didn't work, I would just shut the doors. Dirk asked to talk to me privately and then revealed who he was and offered to help me. It took only a few days for all activity to stop. I asked him what I could do to repay him and he asked me to give Paul a job. He's not the best worker but it was the least I could do. A few months later, Dirk asked me if he could use the place for these secret meetings and that Paul could let them in so I wouldn't have to be inconvenienced. Is there something wrong? Should I be worried?"

Lee rushed to reassure him. "No, you haven't done anything wrong. I do have to ask you not to tell Mr. Smith or Dirk that we were asking any of these questions though. Paul doesn't know who we are and we would like to leave it that way."

"Mr. Stetson, I feel like you aren't telling me something."

"Well that is partly for your own safety. If you knew anything more, you might not act like you normally would around them. When is their next meeting?"

"I believe they intend to have one on Monday night."

"Great. What time do they normally meet?"

"We close up around 9pm so they usually arrive around that time."

"Jerry, we are going to have to ask you not to tip our hand or change anything. It is important to the safety of not only you but the whole country. Can you do that for us?"

"Yeah, I guess so." Jerry said hesitantly.

Amanda spoke up and said "Jerry, now I know this is all hard to absorb. It is really important for all of us to do as Mr. Stetson says. These are not nice men. I think that Paul is innocent but these men are not. I wish we could tell you more but it is a Need to know situation and it is best if you don't know. Do you understand" she added gently.

There was something about the way that Amanda talked to him that reassured him and he agreed to cooperate.

Lee asked one final question "Do either Dirk or Mr. Smith ever show up here other than during their meetings?"

"No, not to my knowledge but I leave Paul to run the place a lot as I have another Restaurant in DC. He's a good kid, really trustworthy, just a bit lazy."

"Okay, well we are going to go back to the agency so we can start making plans. Here's my card. Please call me if anything changes or if you feel like something isn't going as planned."

"Okay, thanks Mr. Stetson and " Jerry looked at Amanda and continued "I'm sorry, I don't know your name?"

"I'm Amanda. Just Amanda. Don't you worry, everything is going to be okay."

"Famous last words?" Jerry mumbled.

"No, Mr. Stetson is good at his job. I trust him completely because he is the best. He will take care of this if you do as he says. Okay?"

"Okay" Jerry said as he smiled at Amanda's encouragement. He then showed them out. As they were heading out the door they said their goodbyes to Paul. Paul was busy scrubbing down the tables since Jerry was there.

Lee guided Amanda to the car and helped her inside.

As he got inside himself, Amanda said "Can we keep him safe?"

"Jerry? Yeah, I think so. I'll post a couple of agents to watch the Restaurant."

"Lee, you can't do that. First off Dirk would know something was up but he also forbid you from using agency people."

Lee ran his hand through his hair. "Damn it, you are right. This man has been a thorn in my side for years. Now it all makes sense. It is only because of Billy running interference that Dirk hasn't been able to lock me up. Well we are going to get both him and Rostov."

"Yes we are" Amanda said as she gently touched Lee's arm to calm him down. Lee looked at Amanda's hand as it laid on his arm and she blushed and removed it.

"Thank you Amanda. You have been a huge help in this case. I don't think we should go to the agency though. I think we need to have Billy meet us somewhere so we can talk in private and not worry about being overheard. Wait here, I'm going to go use that phone booth and call him."

A few minutes later Lee got back in the car. "Okay, he's going to meet us downtown in 30 minutes. You don't need to get home right now do you?"

"No, let's go meet Billy."

They arrived early at the cafe where Lee had set up the meet. He ordered them both coffee and they sat down at a booth in the corner which was well away from the other patrons. Billy arrived a few minutes later. After Billy ordered a cup of coffee, Lee quickly filled him in on what they had found out.

"I can't believe it. I am going to have Francine do a quiet investigation on Dirk to see what we can find out about his background. I wonder how he managed to stay under the radar all this time. I should have done that as soon as we realized he was working for the Russians but I guess I kept hoping that he had converted and that was why he was working for the agency. I'm so stupid!" Billy exclaimed.

"Don't blame yourself sir. You were not the only one fooled by him. I think that the important thing is that we stop him and Rostov, wouldn't you agree Sir?"

Billy agreed and then stared at Mrs. King. She was truly a remarkable woman. Her gift of being able to calm down anyone was amazing. She was truly a treasure. He knew that Lee was nervous about her staying at the agency but with the right amount of training, Billy was convinced that Amanda could be one of the best agents ever. His original plan had been to just use her as a civilian because he didn't need another agent but he was going to have to rethink that. Maybe he would quietly begin training her as an agent without anyone realizing that he was doing it. He definitely didn't want Lee to know it. She brought out the best in him. He could already see the differences in him. It was meant to be for her to be at that train station that day and for Lee to pick her out of the crowd.

Billy snapped his focus back to the present and said "So what do you intend to do now"

"Well Billy, I think it would be best if I tailed Dirk. I would like to get a better idea about his daily routine before Monday. I need him to be involved in the whole operation on Tuesday so we can make sure the charges stick but it wouldn't hurt to have a better idea about who Dirk really is."

"Good idea. Can I do anything to help?"

"I'm glad you asked. I want to borrow a different car. Leatherneck gave me some little VW Bug as a joke but I need a car that won't stick out and I need one that both Amanda and I will fit into."

"Go see Leatherneck and find out what he has down in the garage. You two need to stop trying to outdo each other. Tell him I said that too if he gives you any grief. Meanwhile, it is getting late. I need to go back to the office and get Francine working on Dirk and I think you both should call it a day."

Amanda looked at her watch and realized that Phillip would be coming home from school soon. She agreed that she really should be getting home. They all said their goodbyes and Lee drove Amanda back to her house. He pulled over by the VW so that Amanda could drive her car into the driveway.

"Last chance Amanda. Are you sure you want me to come pick you up tomorrow?"

"Sure, I am your backup remember?"

"Yeah, I know but I can tail Dirk alone. You could stay home and stay safe tomorrow if you wanted."

"No Lee, I will see this thing through. Please come back and pick me up early tomorrow, okay?"

"Yeah. I'll watch to make sure you get inside the house okay."

Amanda smiled and said "Thanks Lee. I'll see you tomorrow."

She quickly walked the distance to her house just as the bus pulled up outside and let Phillip out. She hugged him and they walked in together as Phillip began telling her about his day.

The man had been dozing when he heard the car pull up. She had been gone all day again. He should be following her instead of staying in this stupid tree house. He hated that the boss had gotten word to him that he was not to follow her anymore. What good was he doing here just watching an empty house. The old lady inside sure wasn't any fun to watch. Besides, he didn't like that she hung out with that man that was her partner either. He couldn't wait to take him out. He sure didn't need this partner of hers interfering with the fun he envisioned with her. Soon she would be his. He could barely control the excitement of it except now he had to wait. It was going to be another long night knowing that she was just inside and he was out sitting in this cold tree house. The wait would be worth it though. He was sure of it. He would have to get rid of those bratty kids first. He sure didn't need them ruining his fun. He had never killed kids before. The thought didn't excite him but he knew it needed to be done. He was sure he would be able to handle it. After all, once they were out of the way, Scarecrow would be all his. Every day that he had to wait to touch her flesh made him more anxious for this to be over. Maybe he should just go take her tonight. No one needed to know that he took her early. He knew that wasn't true though. They would find out and he knew it. The big boss would find out and then he would be in trouble. He had to wait. She would be his. No one was going to stop him from enjoying her. He just had to be patient a little longer.

 **TBC**


	27. Chapter 27 - Car Wars

**Chapter 27 - Car Wars**

Lee decided to go deal with Leatherneck. He drove over to the agency garage where they kept the loaner cars. When he walked into the garage, he had to let his eyes adjust to the lack of light. At first he didn't see the man he was seeking but then he noticed Leatherneck was sitting at a desk in the corner. As Lee approached him, he realized that he had on headphones and was listening to music. As Lee got closer, Leatherneck took off the headphones and shut off his tape player.

"LEE! Long time no see. What brings you down here? You didn't blow up that pretty loaner car I gave you, did you?"

"No not yet. I see you are working hard Leatherneck."

"Hey, well you know there isn't much to do right now. I heard that the little mop microphone gadget that Timmy created for you worked just fine."

"Yeah. It did. It must be because you didn't create it."

"Too bad you had to let Rostov go but I would have saved Mrs. King too if I had been in your shoes."

Lee was getting annoyed with where this conversation was going.

"If you are slow, why isn't my Porsche fixed?" Lee asked.

"Just waiting on parts my friend."

"Okay, well I need a better car. What else do you have?" Lee asked.

"You don't like my VW Bug. I thought it was the perfect car to substitute for your Porsche. I'm hurt that you don't like it."

"Very funny Leatherneck. I know you are getting back at me for setting you up with Melanie. We are even now."

"Why whatever would you mean Lee? Melanie was a sweet girl as long as you didn't mind her smacking her gum all night and her obnoxious laugh. Why would I want to get even?"

"Yeah. Are you going to let me have a better car?"

Leatherneck began laughing and extended his hand "no hard feelings?"

"Nah, you know I'll get you back." Lee shook his hand. They were old friends and they loved to outdo each other.

"I'm sure you will. Okay, take your pick; I got a Mustang, a Grand Prix or that boring little Accord over there." Leatherneck pointed to each car as he said it.

Lee would have preferred the Mustang but in the end he chose the Accord because it would be less obvious.

"So when can I expect the parts to be in for my car?" Lee asked.

"Oh I would say any day now." Leatherneck said with a smile as he handed Lee the keys to the Accord.

"Yeah, I'll bet." Lee said as he drove off. He wondered if Fifi would be interested in going on a date with Leatherneck. That might be a match made in Heaven. The thought made Lee smile.

 **TBC**


	28. Chapter 28 - National Mall

**Chapter 28 - National Mall**

Lee arrived at his apartment and took off his tie. As he made himself comfortable on his couch, he noticed that his answering machine light was flashing. He immediately worried that Amanda had tried to get in touch with him. He pushed the play button and heard a sexy female voice say "Lee darling. Where have you been? I was sure by now you would have invited me out to play. I get lonely and bored when I don't have my playmate. Don't make me wait too long or else I might have to find a new playmate." The message ended and the machine clicked off. Penny. He had forgotten all about Penny. Well there was nothing he could do about it for right now. He couldn't afford to have his attention diverted while out at a night club. At this very moment, Rostov could be right outside his apartment watching his every move. How did he become the watched when he was supposed to be the watcher? Damn it, he needed to catch this man. He got up and went to the bar to pour himself a scotch to help calm his nerves. He couldn't help but be drawn to the window and pull back one of the curtains just enough so he could look out. His expert eyes searched the area outside but couldn't he see anything out of the ordinary. Where was Rostov? TP said that he could be in plain sight. Hopefully tailing Dirk would provide some answers. For now, he really needed to get some sleep. Lee drained the rest of his scotch, shut off the light and headed to bed. It would be another night of restless sleep. He could only hope that sleep would be his friend again once this case was closed.

SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK 

The next day Lee arrived at Amanda's at 8:45am and parked down the block like usual. A few minutes later she came out of her house and headed to the car.

"This car is so not you." She said with a smile as she got in.

"I know. He had a mustang but I didn't want to call attention to us. I think this car seems to fit in better, don't you?"

"Well it certainly is less noticeable. So what are the plans?"

"I thought we could go to the agency and wait outside for Dirk to leave so we could tail him. It could be a long day."

Lee began driving to the agency while they talked.

"That's fine. Do you think he will lead us to Rostov?"

"I don't know. I have never paid much attention to the man. In fact, I have always tried to avoid him. He loved trying to get me into trouble. It makes sense now why he didn't like me much."

Amanda began giggling "Well that and the fact that you break as many rules as you can."

Lee looked at Amanda and smiled and said "Yeah, well there's that too."

They drove the rest of the way in silence to the agency.

As they pulled up nearby so that they could watch the cars leaving the parking lot, Amanda asked "Do we know what he drives?"

"Yeah, it's a black Pontiac Sunbird"

Amanda had brought a thermos of coffee and offered Lee a cup. He was grateful that this woman thought of these things ahead of time.

"Amanda, how is Jamie doing?"

"Oh, he's all better. Thankfully Chicken Pox doesn't last long and he was able to go back to school today. You know he still can't stop talking about Pretzel the Clown. You made my little boy very happy Lee."

"I didn't do much. I just helped convince him that it was in his best interest not to let Jamie down is all."

"Well it still was a nice gesture. You can be very nice when you want to be."

Lee smiled and winked at her and said "Don't let that out too far or else you will ruin my reputation."

Amanda laughed and said "I wouldn't dream of it."

"Wait a minute. Here we go." Lee said. Amanda watched as a black Pontiac Sunbird suddenly came out of the parking lot and turned right. Lee inched out behind it, making sure to keep his distance. Dirk soon pulled into the National Mall and parked in a parking lot there. Lee waited for him to leave the parking lot and then quickly parked the car. He helped Amanda out of the car and they began following Dirk. They watched as he walked towards the Jefferson Memorial and spoke to many of the street vendors along the way. It was obvious that this was not his first time being down in this area. Lee looked at his watch and realized that it was nearly noon. He wondered if Dirk was meeting someone for lunch. Dirk had stopped a couple of times at some of the souvenir vendor carts and Lee got the impression that he was checking to see if he was being followed. He and Amanda made sure they turned their attention to something to the side each time and Lee was pretty sure that Dirk hadn't spotted them.

In the end, Dirk made his way to a trailer that had a sign that said "All Dressed Up Burrito." Lee stood and watched Dirk as he apparently placed an order and then waited for it to be cooked. A young lady with long blonde hair had taken his order and she seemed to be keeping him company as his food was cooked.

"I need to get closer to see if I can hear what he is saying to her. Amanda, stay here. I'll be right back."

"Okay." Amanda said.

Lee made his way to the vendor and tried to hear what was being said. It was too late, by the time he got close enough; the lady was giving Dirk his order as she told him that she put in her special sauce. Dirk grabbed the bag and made his way towards the gardens. He found a bench to sit down on and pulled out his food. Lee noticed that he put a piece of paper into his pocket and then ate his burrito. He couldn't help but wonder if this had been a place to communicate with Rostov. He really wanted to see what was on that paper but he couldn't figure out a way to do it. He realized that he had left Amanda alone too long so he decided he better get back to her.

As he walked back to where he had left her, he saw a man with his arm wrapped around her neck, pulling her away from the area. To the average person, the man looked like he was out on a stroll with his lady friend and that he was guiding her into the direction he wanted. Lee could see the pure terror written on Amanda's face though. He circled around and attacked the man from the back. It forced him to let go of Amanda and she quickly darted away from him. Lee punched the man in the stomach and began pummeling him. It didn't take long before he had the man subdued and was able to put handcuffs onto him.

"Are you okay?" Lee asked Amanda.

"Yes, I think so."

"What happened? I just left you for a few minutes."

"I was just standing there waiting for you and suddenly this man came up and told me that I needed to go with him. He said that his boss needed to see me. I asked him who his boss was and he said that I would know soon enough. Then he began telling me how I would enjoy East Germany this time of the year. The next thing I knew, he had his arm around my neck and was pulling me with him. Lee, what did they want with me?"

"They must realize that you are my partner and decided to take you with them too."

"Why would they want me?"

"I'm not sure Amanda. I just know that you aren't safe. Come on, let's get him back to the agency and get you out of here before someone else decides to try something."

Lee forced the man onto his feet and walked him back to the car. After securing him in the back seat, they drove to the agency. When they arrived, Lee noticed that Dirk's car was back in the parking lot. If only he could have seen that note. Lee decided to go back to the Burrito place after he made sure Amanda went home. He needed to talk to the young woman who had served Dirk.

Lee pushed the suspect into the agency. Francine saw him coming and asked what was going on.

"Can you take this scum down to interrogation?" Lee asked. He jumped Amanda and tried to kidnap her. I'll come down in a minute and let you know more information. Give me a minute though, okay?" Lee said as he gestured to Amanda.

"Sure Lee. I'm on it." Francine said as she shoved the man ahead of her down the hallway.

"Amanda, are you sure you are okay?" Lee asked.

"I'm fine. Just a little sore where he had his arm around my neck."

"Chip" Lee yelled to the man sitting at the corner desk. "Aren't you supposed to be watching Amanda's house?"

"I go on duty in about 20 minutes."

"Can you do me a favor and make sure she gets home okay?" Lee asked.

"Lee, you don't have to do that. I can take a cab."

"No, you aren't taking a cab. Chip will drive you home and make sure you get inside safely. Now Amanda, don't argue with me. I want you to go home. I also want you to take the day off tomorrow." Lee put up his hand as Amanda began protesting.

"You listen to me Amanda King! These people mean business. I don't want them being able to use you to get to me. Please Amanda, go home and stay there. I will swing by tomorrow and check on you and we can talk more, okay? Right now, I need to go chat with our friend."

Amanda sighed and said "Okay Lee. I want to go with you on Monday though."

"We'll talk more tomorrow, okay?" Lee pressed again.

"Yeah, okay." Amanda said reluctantly. She then followed Chip out to his car.

Lee sighed in relief. He knew it wasn't easy for her to leave but it was important that she did. He had a lot to do and he just didn't have time to worry about Amanda King. It was better that she was home where she was safe and no one was trying to hurt her. Now he could go interrogate his prisoner.

 **TBC**


	29. Chapter 29 - The Interrogation

**Chapter 29 - The Interrogation**

Lee headed into the interrogation room and faced the man who had tried to take Amanda. He was clearly a German and sat scowling in his chair.

"Okay pal, want to make this easy and start talking?" Lee asked.

"I don't haffe to talk to you" He said.

"No, no, you don't have to but I think you will want to. See, if you don't, I can make your life pretty miserable."

"You can't do anyzing to me. I know you Pig Americans, you don't tordure in zis country."

Lee grabbed the man's shirt near his shoulders and began shaking him. Francine stepped in at that moment and said "Lee, stop. You are hurting him."

Lee shoved him back down in the chair. "I'm going to do more than that by the time I'm done. Look scum, I'm going to go get some coffee and cool down a bit. When I get back, you better want to talk. In case you haven't figured it out, this is not the police station. No one knows you are here and you can easily disappear without a trace. You tried to kidnap my partner so that doesn't make me very happy and I wouldn't mind hurting you a little to get you to talk. So like I said before, we can do this the easy way or I can have fun doing it the hard way. Your choice." Lee then stomped out of the room leaving Francine with the man.

"You know he isn't kidding. I can't stop him. The last person that tried to hurt Amanda, he went so crazy about that he pulled all the man's fingernails out one by one with a pair of tweezers. They heard him screaming for hours as he did it. I really hate to think of that happening to you. What's your name, maybe I can help you."

"Zey call me Hans. Look Lady, I vas paid to do ein chob. I vasn't supposed to grab her yet, I mezed up. I kot anxious zough ven I realized zat I hadn't killed zat guy ven I hit him vith mein car."

"So you were the one who hit Lee with your car? Why did you do that?"

"Ja, I vas paid to take him out of see aczion. He is too cloze to zee lady and vee need him out of zee vay."

"What did you intend to do with the lady?"

"Vee intend to schip her back to see Homeland. She has many zecrets zat vee can uze and betveen her and Rostov, zey vill be prizes zat vill make mein Boss ein fery rich man."

"Wait, I thought the plan was to take Scarecrow back to East Germany?"

"Ja, zat's right. Ach ! Ve blan to take the lady vith us ven vee redurn to the Homeland. Mein azociate has other plans as he is fery attracted to her but the boss vants to haffe her for himzelf afder he is done getding all he can from her."

"So this associate of yours, where is he now Hans?"

"Joerg? I'm not zure. He is zubozed to be vatching zee lady. The boss kot nerffous apout hov cloze he vas getding to her zough zo he told him to sday clozer to the houze. Ach ! I'm zure he is in his hiting place zere"

"Are you telling me that Joerg is hiding near Amanda's house? How long has he been there?"

"Ja, he has been vatching her zere for zefferal days nov. He folloved her around at first put zen the boss realised zat he couldn't control Joerg around her zo he ordered him to hide near the houze. Ach ! Look, can I ko nov? I told you vat you vanded to knov. Ach ! I didn't do anything, you can't charge me vith anyzing. Ach ! I knov mein rights."

"You sit tight. I'll be back."

Francine left the interrogation room and met Lee out in the hallway. He looked grim. The plan to play good cop/bad cop had worked perfectly and Francine was able to get out more information than they had hoped for. The problem was that Amanda was in a lot of trouble. How was it possible that she was being mistaken for Scarecrow a second time? "Let's go in the conference room where we can have privacy." Francine suggested.

After they were inside with the door closed and the blinds drawn, Lee began pacing.

"Lee, there are agents there. She's safe."

"We don't know that. I need to do a sweep of the area and find him."

"If we do that, we lose him. He will get scared and run and she will never be safe. We have to let him make his move."

Lee ran his hand through his hair. "You are right. Of course you are right. Damn It Francine, I can't believe they are targeting Amanda for me again. If I tell her, she will not be able to hide her fear and might let them onto knowing. You didn't see how scared she was when I saved her the last time. On top of it, that monster wants to assault her and if he doesn't get a chance, his boss will do it anyway. There has to be a way to make sure she stays safe."

"Well you could stick by her like glue." Francine said with a smile.

"This is not a joking matter Francine."

"I know, I'm just trying to get you to lighten up. I don't recall you ever being this upset when I was in danger."

"Because you aren't Amanda."

"No, I'm not!" Francine said with some scorn in her voice.

"That's not what I meant Francine. Amanda is just a civilian. She hasn't been trained to take care of herself like you have. She is also a mother of 2 small boys who shouldn't be facing losing their mother."

"I get it Lee. So what are we going to do?"

"Well for one thing, I'm going to go visit her and tell her that I changed my mind. I want her to come with me tomorrow."

"Won't she get suspicious?"

"No, I don't think so. Not if I tell her that I need her to help watch my tail. She seems to enjoy doing that." Lee said with a wink.

"Now who's making fun of the situation?" Francine asked as she headed back to Hans to inform him that they were pressing charges against him. If he got scared enough, he would testify against the others and they might need that testimony.

Lee was already rushing out of the Bullpen before she even made it back to the interrogation room.

 **TBC**

 **A/N – There will be a delay in the release of the rest of this story as I was a bonehead and accidentally discarded what I thought was an older version of the story and it turned out to be the current version so the final chapters all need to be rewritten. I'm disappointed because this story is a bit more intense than my past ones and there was a lot of emotions and actions in those final chapters and also some fun storytelling among the drama. I hope I am able to recreate them so they are close to what they were. No matter what, hopefully the end result will still be entertaining and well received by my readers. Thanks for your understanding.  
**


	30. Chapter 30 - Keeping Amanda Safe

**A/N - Thanks everyone for your patience. This is such a busy time for me and trying to recreate something that I really liked has not been easy. I'm nearly done though and hope to get the rest of the story completed and posted in the next few days. In the meantime, I'm ahead enough that I thought I would tease you with a new chapter for the morning. Hope you enjoy it.**

 **Chapter 30 - Keeping Amanda Safe**

Lee drove the Accord as fast as he dared back to Arlington. He only slowed down as he pulled onto Maplewood Drive. His eyes quickly took in the area and he tried to figure out where this man might be hiding. This was a quiet little neighborhood. Could he have taken one of the residents hostage? No, if he had done that, he wouldn't be able to leave and follow Amanda unless of course the resident was dead or tied up.

Lee got out of the car and made his way to Amanda's back door. He looked in and saw that they were in the middle of dinner so he left the back yard and went to the agency van. He knocked and identified himself. Agent Abbott opened the door and let him in. After the door was securely shut behind him, Lee asked "Have you seen anyone suspicious hanging around?"

"No, no one. It has been really quiet. In fact, we can't help but wonder if it is really even necessary to watch her as she doesn't seem to be the target."

Lee grabbed the agent by the shirt and slammed him against the van's wall. "Now you listen to me, we just found out that there is a man lurking out here somewhere watching the house and watching Amanda specifically. This man wants to hurt her very badly so you better take this more seriously than you are right now. She is in danger. You both might be in danger as he would need to get you out of the way in order to do what he wants to with Amanda. So unless you want to wind up dead, you better be keeping a watchful eye on that house; you understand me?" Lee said.

"Hey Scarecrow, calm down. He didn't mean it that way." Agent Rand tried to calm Lee down.

Lee let the agent go and he immediately began rubbing his neck from where Lee had shoved him against the wall. "Wow, I didn't mean to upset you. I had no idea that there really is someone out there. We haven't seen anything, honest. We have been watching and we will continue to watch. Okay?"

Lee swiped his hair back with his hand and said "I'm sorry. I'm just really worried about Mrs. King. She is in a lot of danger but we can't let her know that okay? We have to let this guy make his move in order to prosecute him. Please just make sure he doesn't harm her and if you see anything, call me immediately, got it?"

"Sure. We understand. We'll take good care of her Lee. We promise."

"Yeah, we know how much she means to you."

"What? Wait. Don't misunderstand me; there isn't anything between Amanda and me. I just don't want to see anything happen to her. She is a single Mother after all and those two little boys need their mother."

"Yeah, whatever you say." Agent Abbott said with a smile.

Lee glared at him but decided to leave it at that. He didn't need the word to get back that he had roughed up the boys because then it might look like there was something between him and Amanda and since there wasn't; he didn't need people thinking there was. Lee left the van and headed back to the back porch. The family was done dinner and Amanda was clearing the table and getting ready to do the dishes. Lee knocked on the window and motioned for her to come out. She glanced quickly to make sure her Mother wasn't nearby and then came out.

"What are you doing here? I thought you were going to come by tomorrow?"

"Yeah, well I got to thinking about what you said and I changed my mind."

"Oh, about what?"

"I need you tomorrow."

"You need me?"

"I mean, I need you to watch my tail tomorrow."

"Ohhh, okay. What are we going to do?"

"I didn't get a chance to go back to that Burrito place so I want to go tomorrow. I thought maybe you could go with me and we could pretend to be a couple so that we seemed less threatening."

"A couple huh? Not a married couple though, just friends?"

Lee smiled and said "We can just be friends if that is better."

"Well I mean it is okay if you want to pretend to be a couple but I don't know why we can't just pretend to be friends. Friends are less threatening and would have the same appearance as a couple, don't you think?"

"Okay Amanda, we will go as a couple of friends. Does that make you feel better?" Lee asked.

"Much better." Amanda nodded as she replied.

"Oh and we will need to look different. Do you have a wig or a way to change your appearance?"

"So we are going undercover to do this?" Amanda said in her quiet pretending to be a spy voice.

"Yeah, you could say that." Lee answered.

"I'm sure I can come up with something."

"Okay, in the meantime, I want you to stay away from the windows and keep all the doors locked. Your windows are all locked too right?"

"Lee, you are scaring me. Did something happen? Did you find out something from that man that tried to kidnap me?"

"Nothing you need to worry about right now. I just want to make sure you are secured in the house, okay?"

"Are you sure there isn't something I should know?" Amanda asked.

Lee put on his best smile and said "Now, wouldn't I tell you if there was something to be worried about?"

"No, no you wouldn't."

Before she could continue, Dotty yelled out "Amanda? Where are you? Jamie needs help with his fractions and I can't figure out this new math."

Lee quickly disappeared and Amanda stood staring after him. She shrugged. He knew something he wasn't telling her. She just didn't know what. She went back inside and locked the back door. "I'll be right there Mother." She found herself checking the locks on the windows as she made her way out to help her son.

The lurker watched the man arrive and go talk to the agents. He wondered what they were saying. He didn't dare to move to find out though. Soon the man went to the back and was gone for several minutes. He finally e came back out and drove off in his car. It should mean that the man was gone for the night. It wouldn't be much longer now. Tonight wasn't right but maybe tomorrow night would be. Hans should be letting him know what the plan was soon. He hadn't heard from him since the car accident. If he didn't hear anything by tomorrow night, he was going to take matters into his own hands. He had waited long enough and his patience was wearing thin.

 **TBC**


	31. Chapter 31 - Friday

**Chapter 31- Friday**

Lee didn't sleep well at all and he was up much earlier than normal. He got up and pulled out some old sweatpants along with a sweatshirt. He then tied a bandana around his head, put a ball cap on top of it and then put on dark sunglasses. He put some chain necklaces around his neck as a final touch. After looking at himself in the mirror, he decided that he at least didn't look like Lee Stetson. He wasn't really sure what he looked like but he wouldn't hang out with himself if he looked like this. After dressing, he decided that there was no sense in hanging around any longer and he headed to Arlington. He stopped and got coffee in hopes that it would help keep him awake and then made the rest of the trip to Maplewood Drive. As he sat watching Amanda's house, he found himself once again searching the grounds for someplace that someone would hide. There were plenty of bushes around but that wouldn't make the best hiding place. Lee noticed that one of the neighbors had a small shed on their property but it was clearly padlocked on the outside. Where was this man hiding? As he sat watching the sun rise, Lee drank his coffee and made plans for the day. He would keep Amanda with him the whole day. Even if he had to give her some bogus computer research to do, he wasn't going to let her go home until later and Lee was going to sit outside himself tonight and watch the house. This man was running out of time so he would be making his move soon. Lee didn't intend to let him get far.

The time slowly dragged to 9am and Amanda emerged from her house. She quickly made her way to the car and got in. "Have you been waiting long? She asked. Lee couldn't help but admire the effort that Amanda had put into disguising herself. Her hair was long and bright red and she had braided it into two pig tails, one on either side of her head. She was wearing a very tight fitting pair of jeans and had on a big puffy sweatshirt. She held sunglasses in her hands along with a bag and her purse.

"No, not that long. Did everything stay quiet last night?" Lee asked as he pulled the car away from the curb and headed for downtown.

"Yes, no one tried to grab me."

"That's not funny Amanda."

"Do I look okay?" Amanda changed the subject.

"What?"

"Do I look okay? Can you tell it is me?"

Lee pretended that he hadn't paid any attention to her looks and quickly looked at her like it was the first time.

"You look fine."

"Well you look different too. I wouldn't have recognized you" Amanda said.

"That's the point, we don't want anyone to recognize us."

"Lee, are you going to tell me what you found out? You are acting strange so I know you aren't telling me everything."

"There's nothing more to tell Amanda. These men are dangerous and we are getting closer to Tuesday so anything could happen. I just want to make sure you are safe."

Amanda sighed. "So you aren't going to tell me."

"There's nothing to tell. I do have a question though. Have any of your neighbors recently disappeared or not been around? Maybe go on a vacation?"

Amanda thought for a minute and said "No, not that I'm aware of. Mother keeps track of the neighbors much more than I do though. Why? Do you think these men are after my neighbors? These people are innocent people. To my knowledge none of them are associated with the agency. Of course they have no idea I'm associated with the agency so I guess it is possible that they are associated with the agency and I just don't know it. Is there something I should know Lee about one of my neighbors?"

Lee smiled at Amanda's rambling. "No, none of them are associated with the agency. I was just wondering if maybe one of them had gone on a trip and left their home vacant or something along those lines." Lee said quickly.

"No, not to my knowledge. Mother hasn't said anything anyway and she usually tells me if someone will be away." Amanda knew that Lee was trying to find out information but she couldn't figure out why. She decided to let it drop for the moment.

They soon arrived back at the National Mall. They spent the morning walking around. Amanda had put her arm through Lee's and they looked like they were just tourists out on a walk. When the Burrito place finally opened up, they made their way over and saw that the same blonde haired lady was waiting on customers. Lee couldn't help but notice how ugly she was. He didn't like to call a woman ugly but this one really was. Her blonde hair didn't look like it had seen soap and water for weeks. Her face was not soft looking like the women he dated. He noticed that she even had large eyebrows that desperately needed to be plucked. The worse part was that she had a 5 o'clock shadow on her lip. He knew that women hated to be waxed but there was nothing more of a turn off then to see a woman with a mustache, even if it was a blonde one that didn't stick out like a darker one would. After she was done waiting on the final customer, Lee guided Amanda up to the Vendor trailer.

"Hi, beautiful day isn't it?" He asked her.

"Yes, it is a nice day. What can I get for you?"

"Dirk sent me to get his lunch." Lee bluffed.

"Dirk? Dirk who?" She asked. Even her voice sounded rough. If Lee didn't know any better, he would think this woman was really a man.

"You know, Dirk. The one who was here yesterday. The one that you gave the note to?"

"I'm sorry, I have no idea what you are talking about."

"On come on, Dirk will be angry with me if I don't bring his lunch back with me." Lee continued to bluff.

"Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to leave. I don't know who you are or who Dirk is but you are scaring me."

"Come on dear, let's not scare the young lady." Amanda said as she guided Lee away.

Lee let Amanda pull him away and they walked so that they were out of her view.

"Damn it, that didn't work. I thought she would at least look guilty."

"It was a good try Lee but she isn't going to talk. Do you think Dirk will show up himself?"

"No, I'm wondering if the note was to set up Monday's meeting so he has no reason to get further communication. We might as well head back to the agency."

"Shouldn't we go somewhere to change? We wouldn't want Dirk to see us in these clothes would we?"

"Good point. Did you bring a change of clothes?"

"I sure did, right here in my bag. I had to explain to Mother that I was trying out for a play. She asked me which one and I told her Pippi Longstockings."

"Pippi Longstockings?" Lee asked. "Do I want to know?"

"You never heard of Pippi Longstockings? You see, there is a set of books about her. She is a little girl who doesn't go by the rules, has all kinds of fun adventures and is disrespectful to adults who are not reasonable. She would be a fun character to play."

"And your Mother believed you were trying out for this part?"

"Sure, and when I don't get it, she will believe that too." Amanda said with a giggle. Lee looked at her and couldn't help but join her with his own chuckle.

They hurried back to the car and then went to Lee's apartment to change. As Lee guided Amanda up, Floyd the door man noticed. He shook his head. Lee's taste in women sure was unusual. When Amanda and Lee came downstairs a few minutes later, Floyd was busy and didn't notice. Later he told his wife about Lee's newest hot date. His wife laughed and said "I can't help but think you are just jealous of all those women of his. Maybe you wish you weren't tied to me and could join him in having a different woman every day." She teased.

"No, I couldn't live like that. I'm happy with what I have." Floyd said as he gave his wife a passionate kiss.

SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK

Lee took Amanda back to the agency. He didn't really have anything for her to do but he quickly checked through his pile and handed her a stack of papers that he said he needed typed. There were enough in the pile to keep her busy for a week especially since it would take time to decipher Lee's handwriting. Amanda found a vacant typewriter and began working while Lee headed for Billy's office. Francine followed him and they entered together without knocking.

"What's with you two? How long since you just come in here without knocking first?" Billy asked.

"Any sign of Dirk today? Lee asked while ignoring Billy's comments.

"No, Dirk has been very absent lately. Is Amanda okay? Francine filled me in on what you learned yesterday."

"Yes, I can't figure it out Billy. There doesn't seem to be any place for this guy to hide yet Hans says he is there. He must be nearby but not where he can see her. I don't dare to search any more though for fear I'll scare him away. "

"What are you going to do about Amanda in the meantime?"

Lee began pacing. "I don't know Billy. I can't tell her but I wish I could so she would be more careful. I guess I'm going to camp out in front her house for the weekend and make sure no one goes near it that's not welcomed."

"That's probably for the best." Billy admitted.

"Francine, did Hans tell you anything more?" Lee asked.

"Yeah, he wants a lawyer. He says we fooled him into talking and he lied about everything."

"I don't believe him."

"I didn't say I believed him, you asked what else he said."

Lee stopped pacing to look at her. "Right."

There was a knock on the door and everyone looked to see who it was. When Billy saw it was Amanda, he motioned for her to come inside.

"Thank you Sir. Lee, I hate to interrupt you but I really need to get home soon. Now, I know you just gave me that typing for busywork. If you really need me to finish it, I can next week but if I don't go home soon, I will be late."

Lee's head popped up. "Late for what?"

Amanda blushed a bit and said "My date. I have a date tonight with Dean."

Francine and Billy looked at Lee with a startled look in their eyes. They hadn't considered she would plan a date in the middle of all of this.

"Cancel it." Lee said without hesitation.

"What do you mean cancel it? Do I ask you to cancel your dates? NO, I do not. I will not cancel my date. I left Dean high and dry the other night and I promised him that we could go out to the movies tonight."

Billy shrugged and said "She has a date. Lee, I think you need to take her home so she can get ready for her date."

Lee sighed and said "Yeah."

He motioned for Amanda to go ahead of him and they walked out to the car so that Lee could take her home.

"Now Lee, if there is something you aren't telling me, now would be as good of a time as any to do so." Amanda tried again.

"I've told you everything you need to know Amanda."

Amanda grew silent after sighing.

Lee suddenly asked "Are you going to marry Dan?"

"His name is Dean and I don't think that is any of your business. Why would you ask me a question like that?"

"I really don't think you should. I don't think he would approve of you working for the agency."

"I didn't think you approved of me working for the agency. Aren't you the one always trying to convince me to quit?"

"Yeah, but….. "

Amanda interrupted him "Lee, right now I'm not ready to get married. I'm still getting over my divorce and trying to find what makes me happy and makes me feel like I'm contributing something. I need time to figure all of that out. Okay?"

"Yeah, okay." Lee said as he pulled up a block from Amanda's house. "You be careful tonight" He told her as she got out of the car.

"I will." She said with a smile and then headed to her house.

Lee looked at his watch. He had just over an hour to prepare before Dean arrived to pick up Amanda. He sped back to his apartment so he could shower and then change into something less conspicuous and more comfortable. He couldn't believe he was going to have to hang out with Dean and Amanda on a date. The thought of Dean having his hands on Amanda made him feel sick. It was true that he hadn't met the guy but he just didn't seem right for Amanda. Lee hoped this night went by quickly. He knew that since Amanda had high Morals when it came to a physical relationship, Lee was fairly certain that this date wouldn't get out of hand. He certainly had been in those situations before. There was time when he was in charge of security at the Governor's mansion. His informant had advised him that the Butler was someone of interest and dangerous. Lee had waited for him to have a day off and then had used his lock pick to enter his room to take a look around. Just as he had determined that there was nothing incriminating there, he heard the key in the lock and a very drunk Butler fell through the door with a pretty maid. Lee had dived under the bed and then got to listen to a drunk man make passionate love to a squealer. It was the most awkward thing Lee had ever endured and he was so glad when they both passed out so he could sneak back out of the room. Thank God, nothing like that would happen with Amanda and Dean. It would be hard enough to watch him kiss and grope her. This was definitely going to be another long night.

 **TBC**


	32. Chapter 32 - Friday Night

**Chapter 32 - Friday Night**

Lee arrived just before Dean back at Maplewood Drive. As he sat a distance away, he noticed Dean's sports car pull up to the front curb and Dean got out and walked to the front door. Lee felt a twinge of jealousy that this man was able to walk to the front of the house while Lee had to sneak around to the back when he visited. Dean rang the doorbell and then just walked inside without waiting for anyone to let him in. About 5 minutes later, Dean walked back out the front door with Amanda following behind him. Lee found himself focused on the behavior of the two because Dean was not touching Amanda, not leading her and almost seemed to forget she was there. Lee decided that they must be late for the movies so he was just hurrying. He found himself shocked when Dean bypassed the passenger door and went to the driver's side without helping Amanda into the car. Even if they weren't dating, it was the gentlemanly thing to do; men were supposed to help woman get in and out of a car. Dean seemed impatient as he waited for Amanda to get in. After she was inside and had closed the door but before she had gotten her seat belt on, Dean started the car forward. Lee began following from a short distance away and soon found that Dean had gone straight to a downtown movie theater. Along the way, Lee could tell that he had kept both hands on the steering wheel and that Amanda's body was nowhere near his. It was all very strange for two people that were beginning to talk marriage together. Dean parked the car, got out and without waiting for Amanda, hurried to the front entrance, turned to see where Amanda was, motioned to her to hurry up and then went inside. Amanda got out of the car and rushed to catch up with him. Lee got out of his car and followed behind, making sure to keep distance between them. Amanda wasn't used to watching for tails yet so thankfully she was totally oblivious to Lee being there. Lee observed that Dean did pay for both tickets and even bought a huge tub of popcorn for them both to share. He then proceeded into the theater several steps ahead of Amanda. Lee told the ticket counter clerk that he would take a ticket for whatever movie the man ahead of him had bought. She handed him a ticket and he thanked her and rushed to the door that Dean and Amanda had just entered.

As he entered, he waited a few minutes to let his eyes get used to the darkness. The previews had already begun so all eyes were on the screen. Lee stood off to the side and looked to see where they had sat down. It only took a few minutes to locate them. While other couples were practically sitting on top of each other and were holding hands or already kissing, Amanda sat next to Dean like they were two strangers. There wasn't any part of their bodies that touched each other and other than an occasional moment when their fingers touched as they both reached for popcorn at the same time; they almost seemed to be avoiding each other. Lee kept his face to the side and walked by them, taking a seat a couple rows above them. The movie was just beginning so he looked to see what it was. It was called The Osterman Weekend and Lee had seen the trailers. He inwardly chuckled since it was about Russian Spies but at the same time, he wasn't sure this was the type of movie he would bring Amanda to if she was his date. In the end, Lee watched very little of the movie because he couldn't help but stare at Dean and Amanda. All the time he had dreaded watching how cozy they would be and instead he was shocked at how little they looked like a couple. This guy definitely was not Amanda's type and he hoped she realized it before she agreed to marry him. The movie finally ended and Lee watched Dean walk ahead of Amanda out of the theater. Once they were outside, they continued walking in the opposite direction of where he had parked the car and soon they stopped at an Italian Restaurant. Lee stood outside and watched them take a seat and start looking at their menus. This had to be one of the most boring dates he had ever been on and he wasn't really officially even on it.

As he stood thinking about how he was going to be stuck waiting for them to enjoy dinner, he saw two police officers walking their beat. As they came closer, he realized it was Frank and Sam.

"Hey guys, remember me?" Lee asked them.

"Oh, Hi Mr. Stetson. What brings you out here tonight?"

"Oh, not much. Hey, I was wondering if you would be willing to play a practical joke on my partner for me."

Frank looked in and saw Amanda sitting at a table with a dark haired man.

"What are you thinking?" he asked.

"Oh, I don't know. How about if you arrest her date on suspicion of robbery."

"Mr. Stetson, we can't just arrest someone as a joke."

"No? Really? It would be just for a short time and I owe her one because she once got a hooker to approach me and I got arrested by an undercover cop. Amanda had set the whole thing up. I just wanted to get her back, you know."

Frank considered the embarrassment that Lee must have suffered from such an arrest, looked at Sam who shrugged and said "Okay, we can pretend to arrest him and keep in for a short time but then we have to let him go."

"You guys are the best. Now, you can't tell her that I put you up to it though. It might get you in trouble if she didn't think the arrest was real."

Sam got suspicious at this and said "Are you sure that you aren't just jealous that she is out with her boyfriend?"

"What? Me jealous? There is nothing between Amanda and I. Don't you and Frank pull practical jokes on each other?" Lee asked. "Come on, she will find this extremely funny once I come clean with her. I promise."

Sam shrugged and said "Yeah, okay. We'll go get him."

Lee ducked into the shadows but stayed in a position so he could witness the scene that was about to unfold. Frank and Sam made their way into the Restaurant and approached Dean. They pointed to their badges that were pinned on their chests and gestured for Dean to follow them. He looked confused and annoyed but followed them out of the restaurant with Amanda right behind him. Lee ducked down behind a bush and listened to the conversation as they exited the building.

"Sir, we just got a tip that you are wanted on suspicion of robbery."

Dean looked at Amanda and then back at Frank and said "That is crazy. I haven't robbed anyone. Who did they say I robbed?"

"Where were you at 10am this morning?" Frank asked while ignoring Dean's question.

"I was at work. No actually I was late to work because of the accident that tied up traffic on the highway. I should have been at work but I ended up not arriving until 11am"

"Do you have a witness that you were driving then?"

"No, I don't have a witness. I usually go alone to work. What is this all about? I demand to know why you are detaining me!" Dean raised his voice.

"Dean, calm down, these nice men are just trying to sort this out, I'm sure it is all a mistake."

"Sir, you will have to come with us to the Precinct. We need to ask you some questions." Frank quickly slipped handcuffs onto Dean and began walking him to where they had parked their car.

"Now wait a minute" Amanda said. "Dean is not the type to do anything like this. Should he get a lawyer?"

"Ma'am, we just want to ask him some questions. You are welcome to come with us and wait for him if you like."

Lee could tell that Amanda was trying to keep her anger down but she did agree to go with them. As they put Dean into the car, Amanda got in on the other side and the car drove away. Lee quickly sprinted to his car and followed it. They soon arrived at the police department and the officers walked Dean inside while Amanda quietly followed.

Lee knew that he couldn't go in for fear of being seen but he also knew that Amanda would now be safe for an hour or so as Frank and Sam convinced Dean that this whole thing was real. Lee could finally relax though he knew if Amanda ever figured out that he was responsible for this, he would pay dearly.

 **TBC**


	33. Chapter 33 - The Worse Date Ever

**A/N – We are winding down everyone. Just a few chapters left but this one is an added bonus since I erased my story's ending. Originally I had Amanda's take on the night as just a small part added into Lee's version but man did Amanda get mad at me and insist on having her own chapter so you all would realize that she's pretty smart. So Here is Amanda's version of the night.**

 **Chapter 33 - The Worse Date Ever**

Dean was always on time for his dates and today was no different. He arrived promptly to pick her up for the movie. The last time he had sat outside and just beeped the horn and her Mother had chastised him so he did come inside to say hello to Dotty and collect her. Amanda was very much used to Dean's hands off approach at dating. She had never had a boyfriend who didn't hold doors for her or want to touch her. Dean had a lot of childhood baggage that he still carried though and Amanda had accepted this behavior from him long ago. She yelled her goodbyes to her sons and then followed Dean out to the car. She managed to get her seat belt fastened before they completely left Maplewood Drive. Dean seemed unusually quiet so Amanda decided that she needed to find out why.

"Are you okay Dean"

"Amanda, I think we need to talk."

"What is the matter Dean?"

"I'm worried about you. You seem to be disappearing all the time so even Dotty doesn't know where you are sometimes. And lately when I call to ask you out, I'm told that you are out walking someone's pet or watering their plants. I'm not sure I like it."

"Well Dean, since the weather bureau wouldn't hire me and I couldn't find a job anywhere, I had to find a way to make enough money to pay the bills. This service I provide gives me a lot of pleasure and it gives me a little extra money."

"Amanda, if you would just agree to marry me, I would take care of your financial needs."

"Dean, we've talked about that. I'm just not ready yet. Why do you keep pressuring me?"

"I'm not, I'm just trying to make you see reason."

"Well I don't agree and if we want to enjoy this evening, I think we shouldn't be talking about that tonight, okay?"

Dean sighed. "Okay, fine. We will table this discussion for tonight but it's not over."

"Fine" was all Amanda said back. They drove the rest of the way in silence and when they got to the theater, Dean hopped out of the car and hurried to the entrance. He looked back and realized that Amanda had not kept up with him so he motioned for her to hurry so they wouldn't be late for the start of the show. Amanda smiled at how ridiculous it was that a boyfriend never helped her out of the car but thought that she should jump into marrying him. There were so many things she needed to work through before she could consider a marriage with Dean. Dean had disappeared inside the theater so Amanda hurried to catch up with him. He had made it to the ticket counter and without consulting her; had picked a movie for them both to see. As he handed her the ticket, he noticed that she seemed upset so he offered to buy them a big tub of popcorn to share. They went to the correct theater room with Dean slightly ahead of Amanda the whole way. Dean picked the seats and they sat down. Amanda noticed that the theater was full of young people and a lot of them were already making out as the screen began showing the upcoming previews. Then the movie began and inwardly Amanda groaned as she realized that Dean had picked a movie about Russian spies. This movie was a little too close to home for her to really enjoy it. She was glad when it was over. As they exited the theater after the movie ended, Amanda noticed the other couples holding hands as they walked out. She yearned for a boyfriend who would enjoy holding her hand and being close to her. Once again she reminded herself that Dean was a good man with a good job who would provide a stable life for her children and sometimes that was more important than having a close, intimate relationship. She couldn't help but think that people who really cared about each other would like to touch each other though. In some cases, they would barely be able to keep their hands off each other. Sadly, Dean's mother had ruined all of that for him and he would never be comfortable in a touchy/feely relationship and Amanda just had to accept it. He turned to her and asked "What are you in the mood for?"

Amanda smiled and said "I heard that there is an Italian Restaurant not far from here that everyone has been raving about."

"That sounds great." He led the way and soon they arrived at their destination and went inside. They took seats across from each other and the waiter brought menus and a wine list out. "Wow, these wine prices are really expensive" Dean exclaimed and ordered the cheapest one on the menu.

"We don't have to eat here Dean. It does seem to be pretty pricey."

"No, nothing is too good for my girl." Dean said with a smile.

When the waiter returned, they both ordered Ravioli and garlic bread. As they sat waiting for their dinner, Dean began telling Amanda bout his latest weather conference and how he had met some fascinating people who were developing some new ways to tell the weather. As he was in the middle of explaining it to her, two police officers approached their table. They pointed to their badges and asked Dean to come with them quietly as to not make a scene in the Restaurant. He obeyed them and Amanda rushed after the three of them. Once they were on the street, the officers began accusing Dean of some robbery and told him he would need to come downtown with them for questioning. Dean might not be the most exciting man alive but well he certainly would never rob anyone. Dean began to get angry so Amanda reminded him that these men were just doing their job. As they continued discussing it though, Amanda found herself struggling with some frustration that anyone would accuse Dean of such a crime. She questioned if they should get a lawyer but the Officers said that they were not charging Dean with a crime at this time. In the end, they all agreed to go downtown in the police car. Amanda was in shock that this was happening especially when they put handcuffs onto Dean. The police officers escorted him to the cruiser that was parked nearby and put Dean into one side while Amanda got into the other and headed downtown.

"Don't worry Dean, we'll get this sorted out. I know you wouldn't rob anyone."

"Thanks Amanda, maybe you'd better call my lawyer when we get there."

"Sir, I can assure you that you won't need your lawyer. This won't take long at all, we just want to be sure you are innocent, okay?"

"Maybe we should trust him" Amanda suggested.

Dean shrugged and looked out the window. They soon arrived at the Precinct and Dean was escorted away while Amanda was told to have a seat in the waiting area. After 30 minutes, she went up to the desk clerk and asked if Dean was almost done. The clerk told her that she didn't have that kind of information and that she was sure Dean would be out shortly. Amanda wondered who she should call. If her ex-husband was still around, she would call him but well Joe hadn't been around for quite a while so he was out of the question. She thought about calling Lee. He might know what to do. As she sat debating it, a thought occurred to her. She had been so upset about Dean being detained that she hadn't paid much attention to the police officers. She suddenly realized that they looked very familiar. Amanda got up and walked back to the front desk and asked the clerk who the officers were.

"Oh, they are two of our best. Officer Frank Stint and Officer Sam Meins."

"Thank you" Amanda said as she sat back down. She was right, these were the two officers who had pulled Lee over the other day. Was Lee somehow involved in getting Dean brought to the police station? No, he wouldn't do that. Why would he do that? Amanda got up and looked out the station's window. There wasn't anyone outside. No, Lee wouldn't do that, it was just a coincidence. As she stood staring out the window, she suddenly heard Dean's voice and turned around and saw that he was walking out with Officer Frank. It had been nearly 2 hours since they had arrived there.

"I'm so sorry Mr. McGuire but you can see how close of a resemblance you were to the real robber, right?"

"Yes, I can see why you thought it was me. Can I go now?"

"Yes sir, you are free to go. Again, our sincere apologies for tying you up this evening."

"Yeah, okay. Amanda, let's go." Dean walked out the door ahead of her. He signaled for a cab and one pulled over and they got in for the short ride back to Dean's car. Neither of them spoke in the cab. After they were back in Dean's car and heading to Arlington, Amanda asked him what happened.

"Amanda that was the most bizarre thing that has ever happened to me. They brought me into a room and offered me coffee and doughnuts and then they started asking me where I had been that morning and if you had been with me. I told them again that I had been on my way to work and was delayed due to an accident but that you were not with me. They asked me how long we had been dating and then asked me if I had recently been near the Lincoln Memorial. They continued to ask me all kinds of questions that didn't seem to have anything to do with anything and then there was a knock on the door and they both left for a long time. When they came back, they said they had found the robber, showed me a picture that had some resemblance to me, told me they were sorry and said that I could go. The one named Sam asked me if I intended to marry you as I was leaving and I told him that it wasn't really any of his business. Amanda, if I didn't know better, the whole thing almost seemed like an April Fool's Day joke but of course it isn't April."

Amanda again couldn't help but wonder if Lee had put the guys up to this. She would have to do her own interrogation to find out.

They arrived back at Amanda's house and Amanda suggested that considering the experience they had both just gone through, that it was better that they ended the evening. Dean agreed and he reached over and gave Amanda a peck on the cheek before she left the car. "Remember I fly to Toledo tomorrow night so I won't be back until next weekend. I really want to go Christmas shopping for the boys, maybe we can go together next Saturday."

"Oh Dean, they don't need anything. If you are going to buy them anything, remember that I don't want you to spend a lot of money on them. They don't need expensive gifts. Christmas is much more important than gift giving."

"We'll discuss it when I get back, okay?"

"Yeah, okay." Amanda kissed Dean's cheek and got out of the car and headed into her house as Dean drove away.

In the Tree House, he had woke up when he heard the car arriving. He sat up so he could have a better view and when he saw the man kiss his woman, it took all he had not to go put a bullet into his head. They sat in the car for a while talking and then she actually kissed him. He noticed that it wasn't a passionate kiss but it was a kiss and she shouldn't be doing that. He would have to teach her that it was wrong to be kissing anyone else. Tomorrow night would be here soon. He couldn't wait.

 **TBC**


	34. Chapter 34 - Guarding Amanda

**Chapter 34 - Guarding Amanda**

Lee waited for Dean and Amanda to get into the cab and drive off before going into the Police Station. Frank saw him come in the door and ushered him into a room and closed the door.

"Well that partner of yours will not be happy if she finds out it was you, she was pretty mad."

"Yeah, I gathered she would be. How about the Boyfriend."

"He was pretty clueless. We threw a bunch of dumb questions at him and he answered them all without questioning why we were really asking them since they had little to do with a robbery. Anyway, if you ever tell anyone that we did this, we will deny it."

"I wouldn't expect anything less." Lee said. "Thanks, I owe you both one. I have to get going now. I'll see you around."

"Yeah, watch your step Mr. Stetson. That partner of yours is pretty smart. She just might figure this out. I wouldn't want to be in your shoes when she does."

"Yeah." Lee said as he let himself out of the room and headed out the door. He stopped along the way at an all-night coffee shop to order some coffee. If he was going to watch Amanda's house all night, he needed some caffeine. It was going to be long night. As he entered the shop, a young blonde who didn't even look much past 14 walked past him and then stopped and looked at him while giving out a low whistle.

"Hi Sugar, where you been all my life?" She asked.

"I don't know but you look pretty young" Lee said.

"I will have you know that I'm almost 20" She said.

"Really?" Lee didn't really believe her and he really didn't have time for her right now as Amanda would be left alone soon. "Well do you work here?" He asked.

"Yup, sure do."

"Great, give me a large cup of coffee to go with just a splash of cream please."

The girl sulked as she went back behind the counter and made the coffee. As she handed it to him, she tried one more time. "If you can wait an hour, I could go back to your place with you and show you how to tell I'm nearly 20 years old."

"Well as tempting as that really isn't, I really have to go." Lee said as he hurried out the door. How in the world did he attract girls like this?

He pointed the car to Arlington and drove past Amanda's house. Dean's car was gone and the downstairs lights were on so Lee hoped Amanda was safely inside. After checking the area over quickly with his headlights, he pulled over a short distance away and then quietly walked to Amanda's back yard. He didn't want her to know he was there because it would worry her but he needed to know she was inside. As he got near the kitchen, he saw that Amanda was standing there drinking a glass of milk. He blended into the shadows and waited for her to get done. She soon put the glass in the sink, turned off the lights and headed upstairs. Lee returned to his car and prepared to watch the house for the night. His intentions were good but he was running on fumes in the sleep department so soon he fell asleep.

Joerg had watched his arrival. When he went into the back, Joerg was tempted to get down and follow him. Maybe they were having an affair. That would make him very angry. As he fought with himself on what to do, the man suddenly reappeared and headed for his car. He got in and sat in the dark watching the house. Joerg was wide awake now. This partner of Scarecrow's could ruin everything. He needed to be taken out of the picture. Why hadn't Hans gotten back to him yet? It was making him crazy. He hated that his orders were to wait. All of these things were right at his hands and waiting just made it so they wouldn't be as easy. He should take this man out tonight. Why wait? In the end, he had no choice. He couldn't take a chance of the man causing a scene and alerting anyone that Joerg was there. Had Joerg known that Lee had fallen asleep, things might have been different. Joerg might have taken the opportunity to kill Lee Stetson while he had the chance.

 **TBC**


	35. Chapter 35 - Don't Pick Up Women in Bars

**Chapter 35 - Don't Pick up Women in Bars**

Lee awoke with a start the next morning when the sun began inching up into the sky. He immediately looked at Amanda's house but couldn't see anything to be concerned about. He couldn't believe he had fallen asleep. He hoped the agents had stayed awake. He got out of the car and walked over to the van and knocked on the door quietly while identifying himself. Since it was Friday night, the Agents who had been watching the house had asked to take the night off so they could spend time with their wives so Agent Palmer and Agent Morgan were on duty.

"Hey guys. Any sign of trouble last night?" Lee asked.

"No Scarecrow, a quiet night again last night."

"Well that could change any minute so keep an eye on the house, okay?" I'm going to leave for a bit. Call the agency if there is any sign of trouble, got it?"

"Of course. Enjoy your day."

Lee went back to his car and got in. It was daylight and he doubted anything would happen now so he was going to go work out at the gym. When he got frustrated, he found that a good gym workout always helped. He had a bag for such occasions already in the car so he headed over to the University Athletic Club and went to the locker room to change. After putting on sweats, he made his way to the treadmills and found one not being used and so he took possession of it. As he began his workout, he looked over and saw a beautiful brunette working out beside him. She had a nice build and obviously worked out a lot. Lee realized that he needed to work out more often if this was the eye candy he was missing by not being there. He set the treadmill at a pace that he could handle and found himself drawn into staring at her. After 30 minutes, she stopped and got off and said "Well since you seem to like what you are looking at, are you going to introduce yourself?"

Lee smiled and stopped running and got off. "Hi, I'm Lee and you are?"

"I'm Suzi with an i and no e. Do you come here often? I don't think I have seen you before."

"Not often enough apparently since we have never met. Look, I'm not big on breakfast myself but can I treat you to something so we can get to know each other a bit better? There is a small cafe within walking distance from here."

"I would like that" Suzi said. "Let me go take a quick shower and change and I'll meet you in the front entrance."

Lee immediately had an image of her body being soaked by a hot shower and wished he could follow her inside but instead he minded his manners and said "Yeah, that sounds good. I think I will take a shower too. See you in about 20 minutes."

Lee went into the locker room and quickly shed himself of his clothes. As he let the hot water pound on him, he couldn't help but think that maybe meeting Suzi today had been one of those meant to be moments. It had been awhile since he had been out and she was definitely a beautiful woman. He had enjoyed watching her sweat as she worked out and her brown hair had bounced behind her since she had it in a ponytail. If breakfast went well, maybe it was time to take some time for himself and have a date tonight. Amanda would be safe since the agents would be there. It wasn't like he was much good to her last night anyway and perhaps if he had a night with a beautiful woman, it would allow his mind to get back on his work and stop focusing on his physical needs. His hand had mindlessly scrubbed all the parts of his body and suddenly he realized that he had been staring off into space while the water pounded onto his chest as he thought about how he would have liked to have shared his shower with Suzi. He shut the water off and then used a towel to dry himself. He quickly changed back into his street clothes and hurried out to meet Suzi. He got to the entrance just before she did and they walked out to the street together. Her car was parked in front of his so they both put their bags into their cars and then Lee offered his hand to her and she accepted it as they walked down the street to the cafe. They entered the cafe and took a back table to be away from the other patrons. When the waitress asked them what they wanted, they were busy staring at each other and both said coffee.

"So Lee, tell me about yourself." Suzi inquired.

"Oh, there's not much to tell. I'm a lonely man who was looking for a woman and I think I found her at my gym. I've been told not to pick women up in a bar, I haven't heard anything bad about gyms though." Lee said with a wink.

Suzi chuckled. "So in other words, you aren't going to tell me and you are going to make me guess who you are. Okay, I'm game. You aren't a doctor or a lawyer and you don't work with your hands because you have beautiful hands. You dress pretty well though so I'm going to guess that you are a business man, probably in finance and you make a lot of money on international business."

"Okay, my turn to guess yours." Lee said.

"Wait, was I right?" Suzi asked.

"Close enough. I think you work in the beauty department. You must cut hair or do nails or something along those lines."

"Actually I'm a consultant. I help people make decisions for their future retirement. Do you have a good retirement plan? If not, maybe I can help you."

"Oh, you can help me, just maybe not in retirement issues." Lee said in a seductive voice.

Suzi got his meaning and smiled and said "Well we aren't talking dessert yet. Dessert is usually served after dinner."

"Great, I'll pick you up at 6pm then. We could go out for dinner at a nice restaurant I know then maybe head over to my favorite night club for some dancing and then if you are a really good girl, we could have dessert at my place afterward" Lee said in a sexy voice.

"Wait, did you just ask me on a date."

"I think I just did. Will you give me the honor?" Lee asked.

Suzi smiled and said "Sure. We'll discuss dessert then though. I have to see how good the main course is first."

"I wouldn't expect anything less. I'm sure you will want to at least have a taste of that dessert though."

"Well this has been fun but I have a lot to do before you come pick me up." Suzi quickly pulled out a business card and wrote her address on the back of it. "I'll be waiting for you." She said.

"I won't make you wait long." Lee held out his hand to help her out of her seat and then they walked back to their cars. After helping her into hers, he waved and then walked back to his. As he got inside, he shook his head. He couldn't believe how lucky he got. He really needed tonight and he couldn't wait. He needed to get some things for his apartment though before his date. He headed to the store and bought some strawberries, a nice bottle of wine; some whipped cream and some ice cream in case she didn't like strawberries. When he got back to his apartment, his lack of sleep continued to catch up to him so after he put his groceries away; he took a nap. When he awoke, it was 3 in the afternoon. He picked up the phone and dialed Amanda's house. The phone rang 3 times and then Amanda's familiar voice picked up.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"Apparently I'm talking to the person who never says hello. Do you say hello to your friends or is it just me that you do this to?"

"Amanda, I've told you that saying hello just wastes time. Seriously, what are you and your family doing today?"

"The boys are upstairs cleaning their rooms, Mother isn't feeling well so she is napping and I'm cleaning the house. Later I intend to keep the boys busy with a quiet afternoon of playing boards games. Why must you know all of this?"

"Is Dan coming over tonight?"

"DEAN and no, he is flying out to Toledo in a few hours. What's going on Lee?"

"Oh nothing. I just didn't know if I needed to give you added security if you were going out."

"You mean like the security you gave us last night?"

Lee realized he had opened a door that he didn't mean to. "What? What are you talking about?"

"Lee, it wasn't nice getting Dean arrested."

"Dan was arrested? What did he do? Do you need me to use my influence to clear any charges?"

Amanda sighed. She could tell that she would have to wait for another time to get the truth out of him. "Lee, I have to go, Mother is coming down the stairs. Bye."

She could stretch the truth too.

Lee looked at the receiver he held in his hand and wondered if Amanda had just blown him off. Nah, she wouldn't do that. Well she was safe and she wasn't going anywhere. Lee fully intended to enjoy his night with Suzi. Amanda was quickly forgotten as Lee began whistling and thinking about how much fun he was going to have that night.

 **TBC**


	36. Chapter 36 - Lee Goes on a Date

**Chapter 36** \- **Lee Goes on a Date**

After taking a shower and dressing in jeans and a comfortable shirt, Lee drove to the address that Suzi had given to him. Suzi had been waiting by the window for him and immediately came outside as soon as she saw him pull up. Lee got out and helped her into the car. He then drove to one of his favorite Restaurants that was near his favorite Night Club. As they sat down in the Restaurant, the waitress brought the menus over and rubbed her hands over Lee's shoulders. "Hi Handsome, I haven't seen you in here for a few weeks. Where have you been hiding?"

"Just been really busy Wanda." Lee said as he removed her hands from his shoulder. "Wanda, this is my date, Suzi. Suzi, this is Wanda. I think Wanda has been working here as long as the place has been open."

Wanda chuckled and said "I'm not old darling. I sure do know how to flip a mean burger though. Someday I'll have to show you privately."

"Yeah" Lee said nervously as he looked at Suzi. She seemed to be amused with Wanda's antics so he was relieved she wasn't upset.

"Wanda, please bring me your best bottle of wine. You know what I like." Lee said.

As Wanda left, Suzi started chuckling. "She has it bad for you Lee. Perhaps I should leave you two alone?"

Lee started to protest and then realized he was being teased. "Well if this date doesn't go as planned, I at least won't go home alone then, will I?" he teased back.

For the next hour they sat getting to know each other. They soon ran out of things to talk about though so Lee suggested they go dancing. He paid the tab at the Restaurant and they drove the short distance to the Nightclub. At first the music had a nice beat and Lee found himself dancing like a mad man with Suzi. Then about an hour later, some of the music became slower and they began dancing closer together. As the night progressed, Lee discovered that Suzi was using the opportunity to grind her body against him until he could barely stand it. "Do you want to go back to my place?" He asked her.

"If you insist." She responded.

They quickly rushed out of the Nightclub and Lee drove just under the speed limit to his apartment.

Floyd the doorman could barely contain his contempt for Lee's lifestyle when he saw another woman being led up to Lee's apartment. They had obviously been drinking as they were giggling and both had their hands all over each other. They stumbled into Lee's apartment and he promptly pressed his lips to hers while she pushed her body against his. She then smiled and said that she needed to go freshen up. As she headed into the bathroom, Lee noticed that the light on his answering machine was flashing. He worried that Billy had tried to get in touch with him so he pressed the play button.

"Lee? Lee are you there? I think someone is outside my back door. I thought it was you at first but when you didn't answer me, I knew it couldn't be you. Lee, I'm scared. I don't have a way to alert those agents outside. I think someone might be trying to break into my house. Maybe I should call Billy, he would know what to do. Lee, I wish you would pick up the OH MY GOSH, someone just smashed the window out of the backdoor. LEE!" The sound of breaking glass was quickly followed by a lot of noise, a scream and then the phone went dead. Lee's heart stopped. Why wasn't he there? He had selfishly left her to go on a date. A date that could have waited until after this whole thing was over. "My God" he thought. "Amanda, please hang on. I'm coming." He could only hope she was okay. As he was running toward the front door of his apartment building, he remembered Suzi and stopped to ask Floyd to go up and explain that he had an emergency and would see her at the gym in a few days. Floyd shook his head as he watched Lee race outside. He was sure that Mr. Stetson's emergency probably involved yet another woman.

 **TBC**


	37. Chapter 37 - Just Your Typical Saturday

**Chapter 37 - Just Playing Games on a Saturday**

Joerg had waited patiently for Hans to show up the whole day. Saturday had been their definite check in day and when Hans didn't show up, Joerg feared that he had been captured or maybe even killed. He knew that he probably should have tried to contact the Big Boss himself but he was cold and really tired of being left out here to watch this woman and not be able to do anything. Tonight was his night. He was done waiting and tonight he was going to take matters into his own hands. It would be only a few more hours until it was dark. He would make his move once the darkness would help hide him. In the meantime, he decided to sink back down into the tree house and get some sleep.

SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK

Amanda had spent most of the morning cleaning the house. Since things had been so busy, she hadn't had time to do a top to bottom cleaning for a while so it felt good to get rid of some cobwebs and to put a fresh coat of wax on the kitchen floor. She had insisted that the boys clean their rooms and she could hear them arguing over some item while they attempted to do so. Dotty had woke up not feeling well and had gone back to bed.

In the afternoon, Amanda had declared the house clean enough and had offered an afternoon of playing games. The boys wanted to go to the park but Amanda knew it wasn't safe for them so she told them that Dean had warned that they were supposed to get bad weather suddenly and she didn't want them out in it. Reluctantly the boys agreed to play games especially when Amanda offered to bake her fabulous chocolate chip cookies for them. They had enjoyed several laughs as they fought for Boardwalk in their Monopoly game. At one point, Dotty had come downstairs to fix a hot toddy to try to make herself feel better. She told them that her head felt like it was ready to burst and that her nose would not stop running. In the end, she went back upstairs but warned Amanda that she was going to put ear plugs into her ears so that she wouldn't be disturbed and could rest. Amanda assured her that she would come get her if there happened to be a fire in the house. Dotty did not think that comment was especially funny.

After devouring a dinner of Macaroni and Cheese, the boys decided to go upstairs to listen to music while they read before they went to sleep. Amanda quickly began cleaning up the kitchen and was in the middle of doing the dishes when she heard some banging outside. She immediately guessed that Lee had stopped by. Maybe he was there to apologize for his stunt with getting Dean arrested. She looked out the kitchen window but his face did not appear. That was strange. He almost always poked his head into her window so she would know it was him. The noises continued so she finally poked her head out the door and said "Lee? Is that you? You are scaring me." There was no answer and the noises seemed to be getting closer so Amanda quickly closed the door and locked it. She hurried to the phone and called Lee's apartment. The answering machine picked up so Amanda began leaving a rambling message hoping that he was there and he would pick up. As she was rambling; an object suddenly came through the glass on her back door and she saw a hand reach inside to unlock the door. Amanda put the phone down and searched for something she could use against the intruder. He had shoved the door open and rushed to her, grabbing her forcefully by the arm. Amanda screamed as he slammed her body against the counter and slipped handcuffs onto her while holding a rag against her nose. Amanda quickly lost conscience and fell to the floor.

 **TBC**


	38. Chapter 38 - The Kidnapping

**A/N Okay, I can't leave you all hanging so I'm going to post the next two chapters so you know what happens to Amanda. You will have to wait for the Rostov part of the story though as I have a very busy weekend and likely won't be able to post much more until Monday. I couldn't make you wait all weekend for this part though. Thanks for your patience. Just a few chapters left.**

 **Chapter 38 - The Kidnapping**

Joerg had slept the rest of the afternoon but when night time hit, his belly began grumbling from lack of food. That was just another reason why he couldn't wait to be done with this. Eating stale bread and water and dried jerky was really not the diet he enjoyed. He couldn't wait to enjoy some Bratwurst washed down with some expensive German Beer. For now, he dug into the jerky bag and ripped off a piece and began chewing it while he checked out Maplewood Drive. It was quiet and there was no sign of that partner of Scarecrow's. He just needed to take care of the agents in the van and then she was all his. The excitement he felt inside was almost too much to take but he forced himself to relax because he couldn't afford to be too sure of himself and then mess everything up. He had waited too long to wrap his hands around her body, soon all his needs would be answered.

After swigging down some water, he relieved himself out the other end of the tree house and then headed down the ladder. He crept up to the van and knocked quietly on the door. He pushed his body up against the van's frame so that he could not easily be seen from inside. Stewy looked out the window and asked the knocker to identify themselves. Joerg didn't know the name of the tall guy who came to visit Scarecrow so he decided to stay silent. Stewy looked around for a few minutes but it was too dark and there was no one standing by the door so he decided that it must be kids playing a joke; he went back to his chair in the van to continue their card game. Joerg knocked again. This time Chip got up and looked around. He shrugged at Stewy and came back to the game also. On the third knock, they decided that something was going on. Chip went to the door and asked the knocker to identify himself or else he could be in danger. When Joerg remained quiet, Stewy took a position behind Chip to back him up and Chip slowly opened the door while shining a flashlight outside. It took only seconds for the bullet to find itself lodged between Chip's eyes and he slumped over and fell out of the van. Before Stewy could react, Joerg slammed open the van's door while throwing a handful of leaves into Stewy's face which temporarily blinded him. As he struggled to clear his eyes, Joerg approached him and slammed his gun as hard as he could down on Stewy's head; killing him instantly. Joerg pulled Chip's lifeless body back into the van and shut the door. He looked around at his progress and was quite pleased with himself. The hard part was done. Now he could move on to the fun part.

He proceeded to Scarecrow's house. He decided that he would go to the back door since that was where the tall dude always went. Maybe she would think it was him and open her door up willingly to him. Since he could never see what the man did out here to get Scarecrow's attention, Joerg decided to just make noises. He scuffed his feet on the porch and used a tree limb to scrape the side of the house, and he tapped on the kitchen window. His efforts paid off because soon she opened the door a crack and asked if Lee was out there. Before he could get back to the door, she had closed and locked it. Enough with the games, he decided. He grabbed up the tree limb he had been using and used it to break out the back window so he could reach his hand inside and unlock the door. The woman looked scared as he entered her home which was a huge turn on for him. He was going to have his fun with her right there in the kitchen but he heard music coming from upstairs and remembered about the kids. He really didn't like the idea of killing kids and he knew he would have to if he stayed there so being the resourceful thinker, he pulled out handcuffs, slammed her against the counter so he could put them on and then grabbed a towel soaked in Chloroform that he had brought just in case. She struggled against him which he knew she would do but then dropped like a rock as the chloroform did its job. She was definitely going to be worth all this trouble. He needed to get her out of there before they were discovered though. He quickly picked up her limp body and carried her out to the van. It had been a wise move to wait until dark so no one could see what was going on. He dumped her inside the van and then pulled Chip's and Stewy's bodys out and left them on the side of the road.

After getting back into the van, he had gone over to her and looked at her while she was sleeping. She was so peaceful looking, but so beautiful. He could take her now but that wouldn't be nearly the fun. No, he wanted her wide awake so that her scared eyes could look at him and so she would fight against him as he took possession of her. He had waited too long to just use her for sex. If he could wait just a little longer, he knew this would be the best sex he had ever had. In the meantime, he needed to get out of this area before her partner came back. He got into the driver's seat of the van, saw that the keys were in the ignition and started up the van. As he was pulling away, he noticed that blasted Accord was pulling onto the street. Joerg knew that he needed to get out of there fast so he floored the accelerator. As he sped away, he could see that the Accord had done a U-Turn in the middle of the road and was chasing after him. He headed for a busier road and began weaving in and out of traffic in hopes of losing this creep. Why was he doing this? Joerg was so close to having what he wanted and this man was messing everything up. He wanted her so bad that it hurt and he would be damned if he was going to lose her just because of this jerk. He raced through several stop lights and then headed to some old factory buildings that he knew about. They were in a seedy part of town so there would be no one there to interfere with his killing this man and finally taking possession of the woman. His heart was racing as he sped the van to the middle set of factory buildings and pulled it into the corner of the building. The building offered him some protection. He got out and awaited this man. He couldn't wait to finally put a bullet into him and get rid of him.

 **TBC**


	39. Chapter 39 - Lee to the Rescue

**Chapter 39 - Lee to the Rescue**

Lee hadn't slowed down since he realized that Amanda's life was in extreme danger. He was so angry with himself. Here he was the one who kept telling everyone that she was to be watched and protected and he had let his own needs get in the way of that. He could only hope that the agents there were doing their job. If anything happened to her, it would be all his fault. He had complete control of keeping her safe this time and he had blown it. He slammed the steering wheel in frustration as he tried to make the Accord drive faster to her house. Along the way, he kept pondering how this man was keeping such good tabs on her. Lee had checked out every angle trying to figure out where he could be hiding and had come up blank. There was no place for him; no place that would have allowed him to watch her this whole time and know her routines so he could make his move. Lee had checked the grounds over completely. There was nothing. Then it came to him. It was slow at first but as the thought whittled its way into his brain, his heart sunk more and more. When he was a kid, his dad had built him a Tree House. He loved that thing but he mostly loved that he could hide in it and watch the neighbors without them knowing he was spying on them. Lee remembered that the neighbor directly across from Amanda did in fact have a Tree House. Lee slammed the steering wheel again. The man had been right under their nose the whole damn time and he had been too blind to see it. He had watched Amanda's every move and knew all of her routines. In fact, the agency van was parked just a few feet from that Tree House. As he sped onto Maplewood Drive, he noticed that agency van was speeding away. There was no reason for it to be leaving Amanda's house right now unless Joerg was in it. Lee knew that if Joerg was in it, Amanda was too. He immediately did a U-Turn in the middle of the road and gave chase. The van began weaving in and out of traffic and tried to make it hard for Lee to follow. He could only hope this Accord would be able to hold up under such driving conditions as Lee gave chase. Before long the van pulled into one of the worse parts of town. It contained the long forgotten factories where mostly drug deals went down these days. Lee slowed down and watched where the van went. Joerg had picked one of the middle factory buildings for the show down and had pulled up next to the building. Lee could tell that he was using the building to shield him. If only there was a way to call for backup, but Lee still hadn't gotten Leatherneck to figure out a way to put a phone in his car. Lee pulled up as close to the van as he dared and got out of the car to use it as a shield.

"Joerg, I know you have Amanda. Look, she's just a civilian. She's innocent in all of this. Just let her go and then you and I can handle this man to man."

"Vou are ein itiot if you zink I belieffe you or if you zink I vould giffe up zuch ein prise. I haffe vaided ein long time to enchoy zis prise and I'm not about to let you ruin mein fun."

"Does your boss know that you intend to do that? Last I heard, he wanted her for himself. I'm not sure he will be happy to hear that you have taken his spoils from him."

"Shut up. He don't tell me vat to do anymore. Ach ! I haffe decited zat it is time for me to pe in charge. I'm koing to enchoy mein little fun vith zis voman ven she vakes up and zen I perzonally vill pring her pack to East Germany myzelf and take all the honors. Ach ! As vild as she is, I'll bet she vill haffe plenty of life to keep me enterdained the vole trip pack too. Zen in the end, it vill pe mein name zat is azociaded vith cabduring the famous Scarecrov. Ach ! If the poss man vants any of the glory, he can pring pack Rostoff. I hate zat man and haffe nein dezire to pe azociated vith him."

"Why such hate for Rostov?" Lee asked trying to stall for time.

"Rosdoff? He's ein itiot. His country has made him out zome zort of hero spy and zo he gets all the voman and all the glory. Ach ! I haffe vorked hard in mein country for the zame kind of recognizion put I don't get any. Ach ! Mein record speaks for itzelf, I haffe done ein lot for mein country. Ach ! Yet mein country vould rather vork ein deal vith Rostoff and get him to defect to our zide zo zat zey can hire him and reblace me. Ach ! I von't let it haben! Jawohl !" Joerg ended angrily.

Lee realized that if he could keep Joerg angry, he might lose his focus and allow Lee to get closer to the van and closer to being able to take Joerg out.

"Wow, I had no idea that they wanted Rostov so they could have them work for them. Your Homeland must be really impressed with his abilities. I can see why that would make you angry. Do you know for sure they intend to take you out of service?" Lee questioned.

"The Big Boss told me ven I came to do zis azignment zat zis vould pe mein last trip to America. He zaid zomething about me getding too old for zeze azignments and zat it vas time for me to meet ein nice voman and zettle dovn. I haffe tried to find ein nice voman but zey expect too much from me. Alvays demanting zat I take zem out to dinner or take zem dancing or zomething. Ach ! Ein man like me shouldn't haffe to vaste time romancing ein voman. Ach ! Zey should vant to sleep vith me chust to feel mein pover. Ach ! Zat is vy I vant Scarecrov, I knov she vill appreciate mein bover zince she is zo boverful herzelf. Ach ! It is too bad zat I haffe to kill her afder I'm done vith her "

"Why do you have to kill her? I don't understand. If they want to make Rostov an offer to switch to their side, why wouldn't they give Scarecrow the same offer?" Lee was getting nervous now but was getting closer to the van and Joerg had not noticed. Lee had lowered his voice as he got closer in hopes that Joerg would not realize that he had switched positions.

"Oh, zey vant her. Ach ! Zey can't haffe her zough. She is mine. Ach ! She vould neffer stay vith me zough and I knov zat. None of zem effer do. Zo in order for me to penefit from all she has to offer, after I'm nein longer enchoying zex vith her, I knov I vill need to kill her to giffe myzelf one final high. Ach ! It vill pe the ultimate high vatching her die too as her peaudiful brovn eyes peg me for her life."

"Won't you be in trouble for killing her?"

"Ja, if zey catch me. Ach ! I indend to dizappear zough as zoon as I redurn to East Germany. Ach ! I haffe zome money zaffed up and I can eazily make myzelf inffiziple. Meanvile, the strength I vill haffe achieffed from Scarecrov vill help me deal vith the tranzizions of mein life."

"Why not just take Scarecrow with you? Why Kill her?"

"Oh I vould loffe to take her vith me but I knov she vouldn't come villingly. At first zat vould be exciding put she has zoze 2 prats pack here in the stades and I knov zat any Mama is koing to fight to get pack to her kids. I couldn't kill zem zo zey vould alvays call her pack and I vould struggle effery day to keep her from escabing me. Nein, it is petder zat I enchoy her and zen get rid of her." Joerg said quite proud of himself for thinking it all through.

In fact he was so proud of himself that he had no idea that Lee had snuck up on the van and after checking out which way Joerg was facing, he had snuck behind him. He tapped him on the shoulder and when he turned around. Lee hit him with everything he had in the face making sure that he broke his nose. He then began pummeling him over and over again and it was only because he heard Amanda moan that he stopped before he killed him. He slammed Joerg's body down on the pavement and said "You are the biggest slimeball I have ever had to deal with. You better hope that you didn't have a chance to hurt her because you might not make it out of here if you did."

Lee then entered the van and found Amanda just beginning to stir but still seemingly asleep. He pulled his lock pick out and took off her handcuffs. He sat beside her on the floor and pulled her upper body into his lap. As he gently swept her hair out of her eyes, and continued to brush her hair with his hand, he couldn't help but talk to her even though she wasn't conscience yet.

"Oh Amanda, I am so sorry I let you down on this one. I knew what he intended and I stupidly let my own life get in the way of protecting you. Thank God I found you in time. You don't have to keep proving yourself though. You are such a brave woman. I would say probably braver than any woman I have ever worked with other than maybe Francine but since you haven't even had training, you don't even know how to protect yourself but you still refuse to back down. After we catch Rostov, you and I have to sit down and talk about this agency thing. It is time for you to get away from this craziness. This is no place for you."

Amanda moaned again and then her eyes slowly began to open. When she realized that she was lying in Lee's lap, her eyes darted around to see where she was. She sat up way too quickly and her hand flew to her head.

"Hey, careful now. He drugged you, probably with chloroform. You will be okay but it will take a bit longer to wear off. How do you feel?"

"Like I was hit by a mack truck."

"That sounds about right. Did he hurt you Amanda? I mean, did he touch you anywhere he shouldn't have?"

Amanda looked at Lee stunned. "No, did he intend to?"

Lee's face turned sober and he nodded. "Yes, he did. He had big plans for you Amanda but you are okay and you are safe now and I found you before he could do any of that." Lee pulled her into his arms for a few minutes to reassure her. It felt good to hold her and know that she was safe. Regrettably after what seemed like only a few minutes, Amanda broke the contact and pulled away from Lee. "Where is he now?"

Lee got up and pulled Amanda to her feet and brought her outside where Joerg's body lay. "Is he dead?" She asked.

"No, I let him live but he is going to feel all of that for awhile. Come on, let's get this scum downtown and then get you cleaned up so you can go home."

"Oh my gosh! Lee, my family doesn't know I'm gone. I need to get home now."

"I don't think you should go home until the effects of the chloroform have totally worn off and you need to be able to clean yourself up so your family doesn't question anything. Why don't you call them and let them know that you had an emergency come up." Lee suggested.

They found a pay phone nearby (SMK style :) ) and Amanda placed a call to her house. Phillip answered the phone. "Hi sweetheart, is everything okay there?

"Mom is everything okay? Grandma is still asleep. Jamie and I went downstairs to ask you if we could have some more chocolate chip cookies and milk before bedtime and you weren't there. Where did you go mom. We noticed that the back door seemed to be broken and there is glass everywhere. I made Jamie go upstairs with me and we locked ourselves in my room because I wasn't sure what was going on. "

"Good idea Phillip but everything is okay. We had a bat fly into the back door window and I rushed it to a rehabilitator. They say that the bat is going to be just fine. I'm going to make sure they are all set and then I'll be home shortly. You both stay locked in your bedroom, okay?"

"Sure Mom. Hurry home. Bye." Phillip said.

"He's a great kid, smart like me too to go upstairs and lock them in the bedroom."

Lee smiled and said "yes, smart like you. Come on, let's go."

 **TBC**


	40. Chapter 40 - The Aftermath

**A/N Another bonus chapter. This story is a little intense for Season 1. Thought this might bring it down a notch. Hope you enjoy.**

 **Chapter 40 – The Aftermath**

Amanda had awakened to find herself lying across Lee's lap. What on earth was going on? She sat up quickly and it felt like a hammer smashed into her forehead and then just kept pounding in the same spot. Lee warned her to be careful because she had been drugged. Then he told her how Joerg planned to rape her and her blood went cold. It soon dawned on her that this was the big secret that Lee had kept from her. It had obviously affected him too because he wrapped her up in his arms and comforted her. He had only done this once before and that was when he had saved her from certain death when Zinoviev had kidnapped her for a trade with Rostov. She soon realized that she was enjoying the closeness of Lee too much and she quickly broke the contact. She would have liked to have stayed in his arms forever but it was time for her to move on.

They had left the van and Amanda saw Joerg's body lying on the ground. As much as it upset her that he intended to hurt her that way, she had never wished anyone dead before so she was relieved that Lee hadn't killed him though she was sure he had wanted to. In the end it was Lee who had suggested she call home to let them know she was okay in case anyone noticed she was gone. He had insisted that she spend some time to clean up and allow herself time to absorb some of what she had just experienced. She had hoped she could clean up the mess downstairs in her home before anyone had seen it but her sons had witnessed it and were questioning what happened when Amanda called them so she came up with a story about a bat hitting the window and breaking it. She was getting good at creating stories. It worried her a little that she could now lie so easily but it was all for the greater good so she could justify it. Lee was originally going to take Joerg down town and then take care of Amanda but Amanda couldn't stop shaking from her experience so he went back to the pay phone and called Billy and asked him to send a car over to pick up Joerg. He then told Billy about Chip and Stewy. Billy promised to send an agent in the car to take the van over to pick their bodies up and take them away from Maplewood Drive before anyone noticed.

Amanda would have liked to have had Lee hold her while they waited for the agents to arrive but he wasn't her boyfriend and it wasn't his job to comfort her. She was a big girl and she would get over this. She told Lee that her head hurt so she was going to go sit in the car. He nodded and kept his gun aimed at Joerg who was beginning to come to. Before he was fully awake, an agency car arrived and Agent Abbott got out and walked over to Lee.

"Is it true that Chip and Stewy are dead?"

"Yeah, I'm afraid so."

"Geezus, you weren't kidding when you said this man was dangerous. I'm sorry that I wasn't taking things serious enough. I think as my punishment, Billy decided I should be the one who goes and gets the bodies."

"It isn't a pretty sight. I think they both died quickly though. At least there is that." Lee said in as comforting way as possible. He knew that Agent Abbott would carry this around with him for a long time but it would also make him a better agent.

"Yes, at least there is that." Agent Abbott agreed. Agent Morrison had joined them and they roughly grabbed Joerg and shoved him to the agency car. After handcuffing him with his hands behind him, they shoved him into the back of the agency car. Agent Abbott got into the van and headed out to get the bodies while Agent Morrison headed toward the agency with Joerg so that the interrogation could begin. This man was going to wish Lee had killed him before they were done with him.

Lee watched them both go and then went over and got into the car with Amanda.

"Let's say we go back to my apartment and you can take a shower and I'll wash your clothes for you. We should have you home in a couple of hours."

"Okay" Amanda said though she sounded like a thousand miles away.

"Amanda, are you okay?" Lee asked as he put his hand on top of hers.

"I will be. Lee, how do you deal with all of this? Does it ever get any easier?"

"No, I think you just become dead to the pain of it. Do you think you are going to want to finish helping me get Rostov."

"Of course. I'm your partner. I will be there tomorrow."

Lee smiled and didn't complain when she called herself his partner. She certainly had earned that title lately.

When they got to his apartment building, he put his coat around her shoulders and then walked her inside. Of course Floyd noticed right away and began shaking his head. He had been right; Mr. Stetson had dumped the lady he had brought home to go after another lady. What a life this man led. He had to admit that this woman was much more beautiful than the other one had been. It wasn't just her outer beauty, there was an inner beauty too that shone through for all to see. If Mr. Stetson was smart, he wouldn't let this one get away.

Lee let them both into his apartment and then went to his room and found a robe for Amanda to put on so he could take her clothes. She took a long hot shower and then came out in his robe and sat down on the couch.

"Lee, why didn't you tell me what Joerg had intended to do with me?"

Lee sighed. He was definitely not off the hook with this one.

"Amanda, I had hoped to stop him before he ever touched you. I blew it tonight. I decided to go on a date and leave you in the hands of the agents that were there because I didn't think he would make his move until tomorrow night. I messed up Amanda and it almost cost you. I hope you can forgive me."

"There is nothing to forgive Lee. I just wish you would have told me is all."

"I'm sorry Amanda."

"So are you ready to tell me why you had Dean arrested now?" Amanda said with a sly grin.

Lee thought about denying it but realized that Amanda wasn't mad about it so he chuckled and said "Okay, you got me. I am guilty. I was following you to make sure you were safe and you had gone into that restaurant and I was bored. I convinced Sam and Frank that you had pranked me and that I needed to get you back. They went along with it reluctantly and I promised them that they wouldn't get in trouble for it, that you would find the whole thing funny; well at least eventually you would."

Amanda began laughing "Well now that I know it wasn't real, it was sort of funny. Poor Dean was so confused though. He couldn't understand how they had mistaken him for a robber and then they asked him the weirdest questions. Did you put them up to the questions too?"

"No, I think Sam used the time to try to get more information about you. If you ever break up with Dean, Sam would ask you out." Lee said with a wink.

"He would, would he? I'll keep that in mind."

"Come on Amanda, what do you see in that guy anyway? You deserve better."

"I don't think it is any of your business." Amanda said. She wasn't in any mood to defend her relationship with Dean because she couldn't defend it to herself right now. Lee had shown more caring for her today in his touches and how he had held her than Dean had during their whole relationship. After the holidays, she was going to have to make some decisions about Dean. She wouldn't do anything now though as no one should make major decisions like that during the holidays.

Lee realized he had overstepped his position so he offered to make them some coffee. Amanda agreed and it gave Lee something to do with his hands. Soon the wash cycle ended and he was able to move the clothes to the dryer. They sat and drank their coffee while they waited.

"What will happen to Joerg?" Amanda asked.

"We'll put him through Hell questioning him to see what information he has and then I expect that with all the charges we'll file against him that he will spend the rest of his life in an American prison."

Amanda was sad that anyone would spend their life in jail but she was also relieved.

"Thank you for saving my life Lee."

Lee squeezed Amanda's hand and said "It was my pleasure. I think the dryer timer just went off. Let's get you home to your family."

 **TBC**


	41. Chapter 41 - Scarecrow Meets Zinoviev

**Chapter 41- Scarecrow's Meeting with Zinoviev**

Lee had made sure that Amanda got home safely and then he had gone back to his apartment. It was late by the time that Amanda entered her home. She noticed that the van was gone and there was no sign of the double murders that had taken place across the street from her home. She was thankful that her Mother and sons were asleep and after checking on all of them, she went downstairs and poured herself a glass of milk so that she could unwind before heading to bed. She shuddered as she thought about what Joerg had almost done to her. Lee had informed her that she once again had been mistaken as the Scarecrow too and that Joerg's job was to kidnap her so she could be brought back to East Germany. His boss apparently had plans to assault her too which did not leave her feeling very safe. However, Lee had promised that her house was being watched by the agency and that she was indeed safe but Lee had decided to make it less obvious that the house was being watched this time. Amanda wondered where they were hiding but she was too overwhelmed and decided not to ask. She trusted Lee and he always seemed to come through for her. She couldn't help but let her mind wander to him holding her. Oh, it felt so good to have a strong man's arms hold and comfort her like that. It had been a long time since she had such an experience and she realized that she really missed it. She understood why so many women were willing to take what Lee offered them even though he would probably dump them a week later because he made you feel very special. Amanda was surprised at the feelings he had stirred up in her as he held her. She realized that she was starting to really care about him but he was only doing his job so she had broke off the contact before she did or said something she would regret. Lee Stetson was an amazing, intriguing man but she was out of his league and she knew it. She wasn't sure that Dean would ever have a chance against him though. She really needed to make some decisions about Dean after the holidays. Right now, she realized that her body was about to collapse from exhaustion. It was time to go to bed and get some sleep. Everyone else would be up bright and early and would expect her to be too. She put her glass in the sink and headed upstairs. She knew that her mind wasn't going to shut off though and it would be hours before she fell asleep. Her dreams were full of glimpses of being chased, being touched and then having someone come in and save her. It seemed like she had barely put her head down to sleep when suddenly she was wide awake as Jamie said "Mom are you okay?"

Amanda sat straight up in bed and looked around her to get her bearings. When she realized she was in her bedroom and that she had in fact made it home safely the night before, she said "I'm okay sweetheart. Want to come snuggle for a few minutes?"

Jamie dove into the bed and Amanda held open the covers for him so that she could wrap him up in her arms.

"You were just moaning in your sleep. I got worried. I was really scared last night when you disappeared. Phillip told me that you were fine though. He said that you saved a bat. Is that true mom?" Jamie questioned.

Amanda took a deep breath and continued the story that she had started the night before. Jamie believed his mom and said "Well I'm glad you saved the little bat."

"Me too sweetheart. Let's go downstairs and get some breakfast, shall we?" Amanda asked.

"Sure" Jamie said as he scrambled out of the bed and headed down the stairs.

As they entered the kitchen, Dotty looked up from cooking breakfast and said "Oh there you are dear. Phillip tells me that a bat got into the house? That must have been very upsetting. I hope it didn't head for your hair dear. Bats do that; you know."

"No mother, it hit the window and got hurt so it just laid there. I couldn't just let it die so I brought it to a rehabilitator."

"I didn't know that anyone saved bats. You learn something new every day" Dotty said as she placed the plate of pancakes on the table.

Everyone sat down to have breakfast and Amanda was able to change the subject.

"How are you feeling this morning Mother?"

"Oh, much better Dear. I think I'm going to go back to bed though and try to rest. Fred wants to take me out again soon and I can't go while I'm feeling like this."

"That sounds like a good idea mother." Amanda agreed. The boys quickly devoured their breakfast and then ran out to meet the school bus while Amanda prepared to get ready for work. She was still shaken from her experience but no one seemed to notice. She was thankful for that. She hated to admit it but she would be happy when this case was over. She knew that Lee wanted her to quit the agency but she wasn't ready to do that; at least not yet.

SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK

Since the tree house had done such a good job hiding Joerg, Lee used it to hide one of his agents to watch over Amanda's house. It was better than putting another vehicle in the neighborhood which would cause suspicion. Agent Abbott offered to take the first shift. He was still very torn up by the deaths of Chip and Stewy. Lee knew he would be very vigilant and it allowed him to go home after dropping Amanda off and get the first good night of rest in a few days. He really needed that because the next couple of days were sure to be exhausting.

He awoke the next morning and decided he wanted his Porsche back. He drove to the motor pool first thing and saw Leatherneck with his feet up on his desk jamming to some music that only he could hear since he had earphones on. Lee wondered how the man ever got any work done. He walked up to him and pushed his feet off the desk which startled Leatherneck.

"Oh, Lee, hi. What are you doing down here?" Leatherneck said with a smile.

"I want my car back. Is it ready yet?"

"Well it just might be. What's it worth to you?" Leatherneck asked.

"Me not beating the crap out of you? Come on, you know that you've already gotten me back."

"Yeah, you are right. The car is all set Lee. Didn't you like my little Accord though?"

"Oh yeah, I loved it. Where are my keys?" Lee said sarcastically.

Leatherneck laughed as he handed Lee the keys.

"I owe you one." Lee said. "I always repay my debts."

"I'll be waiting." Leatherneck said as he enjoyed the banter between the two of them. "Say hi to Mrs. King for me."

"Sure, if I think of it." Lee got into his Porsche and quickly drove off. He hadn't made any plans to pick up Amanda but since he was early, he decided he would swing by and convince her to ride with him. He drove onto her street just as she was coming out of the house. Her face lit up when she saw that he had his car back.

"Care for a ride?" He asked.

"Sure, when did you get it back?"

"I went to the motor pool this morning and convinced Leatherneck to let me have her."

Amanda got in and hooked her seat belt. "So what's the plan today?"

"I thought I would go have a little chat with Zinoviev myself and see if I could convince him to talk. You can sit in the observation room and watch, okay?"

"Lee, I just want to thank you again for saving my life yesterday."

Lee put his hand on top of Amanda's and squeezed it. "It's okay. You don't have to thank me. Amanda, do you want to talk to one of the agency therapists? They are good at getting you through traumatic stuff like this."

"No, I'm fine. I'll be fine. Let's just catch Rostov, okay?"

Lee smiled "Okay"

They pulled into the agency parking lot and Lee helped her out of the car and guided her to the elevator. They met up with Francine as they all were heading into the Bullpen at the same time.

"Amanda Dear, I heard what happened or at least what nearly happened to you and I just wanted to tell you that I'm glad you are okay."

"Thanks Francine. That's awfully nice of you to say that."

"Sure, and I'm sure we will all understand if you decide that this agency job is not quite the right fit for you. After all, you can't threaten to take out the enemy with a pair of knitting needles can you dear?"

"Francine!" Lee warned. "Can you please get Zinoviev and bring him into Interrogation room #1. I want to have a chat with him."

Francine sighed and said "Okay, don't expect to get anything more out of him though. I already have tried. He's not talking. You know that if I can't get a man talking, no one can"

"Just do it Francine." Lee admonished.

Francine glared quickly at him and then hurried to do as she was asked.

Lee looked at Amanda and said "Don't let her bother you."

"Who? Francine? I know that is the way she talks. It's okay. I'm a big girl. She didn't bother me."

Lee smiled and thought to himself that Amanda sure did surprise him most days too. This was one housewife that didn't let much affect her. He led her to the observation room and explained how the mirror allowed her to see into the room but that they would only see a mirror on the other side and wouldn't be able to see her at all. He pointed out the speakers which would allow her to listen in. He then showed her that there was a microphone so that she could turn it on and talk to them but as long as it was off, the interrogation room wouldn't hear any sounds coming from this room.

Amanda laughed as Lee finished showing her around. "This is certainly spy business at its best isn't it?"

Lee chuckled and said "That's right; nothing but the best in this spy business. Okay, Francine is bringing him in. Have a seat and watch a master go to work."

Amanda smiled at Lee's brag and took a seat. This could be an interesting show. She was always fascinated to watch Lee in action.

Francine had made Zinoviev sit down and had left him. Lee let his stew for another 10 minutes before going into the room.

"Well if it isn't Scarecrow's partner. To what do I owe the pleasure of seeing you again?" Zinoviev asked.

"Are you enjoying your stay at our club med resort here?" Lee asked with a sarcastic grin.

"Oh yes, yes, the accommodations are very lovely. I almost think that they have Russia's beat. How much longer do you intend to keep me here anyway?"

"Well see, that's up to you. Word on the street is that Rostov found out that you are ratting him out."

"What? I didn't rat him out. I haven't said a word about the man to any of you and you know it."

"Well, I know that and you know that but unfortunately Rostov doesn't know that. It is unfortunate for you that such a vicious rumor has been spread. After all, he will likely take you out if he sees you loose on the street so you see for your own safety; we can't release you."

"That's ridiculous! Rostov would never believe such a story. He knows that I'm loyal to Russia and to his work."

"Does he? Should we let you loose and see what happens?"

"Are you threatening me?"

"No, no threats."

"Why are you here then and where is the Scarecrow? I was sure she would be the one who would be questioning me and instead your agency has everyone but her. If you send her in here, maybe I'll give you some ideas about where you can find Rostov."

"Why do you need to see Scarecrow?" Lee asked suddenly suspicious.

"The Scarecrow is an incredible force in this agency. After all, she captured me and my men. Yes, I have made up my mind; I will give you some information if I can see Scarecrow."

Lee glared at the man for a minute and then left the room. He began pacing out in the hallway while he rubbed his hand through his hair. He was so close and Amanda seemed to be the key. She would be safe because Lee would be in there with her. Zinoviev couldn't touch her and maybe he would give her information that he refused to divulge to anyone else. Lee finally made a decision and went to the observation room. Amanda was staring at Zinoview as he entered.

"You don't have to do this." He said as she said "Lee let me talk to him."

"Are you sure Amanda? I mean, I'll be right there so you will be safe."

"No, Lee, I think you need to stay in here and watch. I don't think he is going to talk if you are there."

Lee began pacing again while rubbing two of his fingers together. He knew that she was right but he didn't feel comfortable letting her go in alone. Why did he want her in there anyway? Lee sighed and said "Okay, but I'll be right in here. Do you think you can pull off pretending to be me again?"

"Well I think that he is so blind that he doesn't see that there is no way that I could be you. I'll be okay Lee."

Lee showed Amanda where the door to the interrogation room was and then told her to count to 50 to give him time to get back to the observation room before she went in.

When she entered, Zinoviev broke out into a huge smile.

"Scarecrow, you came! I'm so happy to see you."

"Well they tell me that you wanted to see me and were willing to talk if I came. So here I am."

"Yes, Yes, I can see that. You are truly an amazing woman Scarecrow. I have always admired your work. You are an inspiration to so many of us in this business. It is unfortunate that we are on opposite sides though. Is there any way to convince you to jump to our side?" Zinoviev said with a smile.

Amanda smiled back and said "No, there is no chance of that. I'm sure I can help you to get home sooner though if you would tell us where Rostov is."

"What makes you think I know where he is?"

"Oh come now, we know you get information even inside of here. Plus you know what his tactics are. I'm not stupid, right? After all, I am the Scarecrow."

"True, true. I'm surprised that you haven't used any harsh tactics on me to get that information out. Isn't that what we spies do, torture to get what we need?" 

"Well I could torture you but I think it would just convince you to stay quiet. No, I would rather see you give up the information willingly." Amanda said with a smile as she grasped Zinoviev's hand.

Lee couldn't believe what he was seeing. He had never seen any kind of interrogation like this before and this man was actually beginning to fall for it. He could see it in his eyes. Did everyone who met Amanda suddenly become bewitched by her? He shook his head as he watched it play out. He wondered if Zinoviev was just playing with Amanda for his amusement but it was interesting that he was talking more to her than he had to anyone else even with some drugs to try to loosen his tongue.

"Oh my dear, I sure wish we were both on the same side. I would love to take you out to dinner and then go dancing with you. You know in my younger day, I cut a pretty mean rug."

"I'm sure you did. Dinner with you would be nice." Amanda said as her fingers rubbed the back of his hand. She looked up at him with a smile and asked "So why can't we find Rostov?"

"Well because you are probably looking for a man."

"What?"

"Rostov's favorite disguise is being a woman. He is pretty good at it too but terribly ugly. Nothing like you; you are truly a beautiful woman Scarecrow."

"Thank you. Do you think he is still in the DC area?"

"Of course, he intends to steal that Supercomputer that is being unveiled tomorrow. Once he has that, Russia will decorate him with all the honors of a hero and he will retire a very rich man."

"Any idea how he intends to steal it?"

Zinoviev appeared to be in deep thought. Amanda continued her rubbing motions on his hand and actually began moving her fingers up and down his palm. Lee sat mesmerized watching it. Francine would have thrown her body at the man and likely not gotten anywhere and here Amanda was just using her fingers and obviously turning the man on. Of course, he didn't believe a word that Zinoviev was saying. Rostov a woman? Maybe if she kept him talking, he would slip something useful though.

"If I had to guess, I think he will likely kidnap someone and offer to make a trade."

"Do you think that there is anyone important enough that they would trade the supercomputer for that person?"

"Well you are Scarecrow but I'm sure he realizes that you are too well guarded these days. No, I'm sure he has a few targets in mind but I don't know who they are."

"Okay, well thanks for this little talk. I have enjoyed it." Amanda said with a smile.

"Oh, don't tell me that you have to rush off?"

"I do. I'm sorry. It has been fun." Amanda got up while letting go of his hand. She went to the door and an agent opened it and let her out. Lee met her in the hallway.

"He's a woman? Really? That was a waste of time. I thought he was going to tell you something at first. Instead, he just told you lies in hopes of winning you over."

"You think he was lying Lee? I don't. I think he was totally telling the truth."

"Oh, why cause you think he fell for you in there so he couldn't wait to tell you all his secrets? Amanda, I didn't really expect him to tell you anything but I was hoping. Instead, he just played with you and had fun. That little hand stroking thing didn't work. You see, men expect more than just some hand action. Now if you had gotten up and rubbed your hands down his chest or maybe even ran them through his hair, maybe he would have been more willing to share what he knew but just stroking his hand didn't get his attention enough. That's why Francine is so good at her job."

"Lee, why can't you ever give me credit for anything. I didn't need to throw my body at him nor would I have. For one thing, he wasn't necessary. He told me the truth and I know where Rostov is hiding now!"

"Oh really, you think you are that smart huh? Okay, Mrs Scarecrow, superspy, where is Rostov?"

"He's at the National Mall in a little place called All Dressed Up Burrito. Lee, he's the person who met Dirk that day."

Lee looked at Amanda and knew immediately that she was right as he envisioned the rather ugly looking lady who had refused to talk to him. TP had been right all along, Rostov was right under their noses.

 **TBC**


	42. Chapter 42 - The Hunt for Rostov

**Chapter 42 – The Hunt for Rostov**

Lee and Amanda headed to Billy's office to let him know what they had just learned. After filling him in on this new information, Lee suggested that they needed to go see if they could have a chat with the young lady at the Burrito place. They hurried out to Lee's Porsche and Lee drove them to the National Mall. They both found that they had to force themselves to slow down so that they didn't scare him off as they got closer. They stopped a short distance away so they could scope out the situation. It was nearly lunchtime so the vendors were all very busy with customers.

"Okay Amanda, he doesn't know what you look like so I want you to go stand in line and as you place your order, I will sneak up behind him and apprehend him. Got it?"

"Sure, got it." Lee began to walk away when he heard "what should I order?"

He turned around and said "What?"

"What should I order? I mean I don't want to cause him to be suspicious so I should know ahead of time what to order. I know he likes Burritos but would it seem suspicious if I ordered one? What should I order?" Amanda repeated.

Lee couldn't believe they were having this conversation. "Amanda just order a Burrito, nothing special and don't act weird. Just act like you would at any fast food place."

"Okay, if you are sure."

"I'm sure. Now get moving."

"Yes sir!" Amanda hurried to join the growing line. The line slowly moved forward and finally after 10 minutes, she was the next one in line. She noticed that Lee had slipped into the back so she knew he was ready for when he heard her place her order. As she walked up to the counter, she could tell right away that this was not the same person who had been there before. She started to yell to Lee to let him know but before she could, he had approached the blonde haired girl and pointed the gun at her head while telling her to freeze. The girl immediately put her hands up and screamed. Then the whole line of customers screamed.

"Oh oh." Amanda said "Lee, we have made a mistake."

"What?" Lee asked with a stunned look on his face. Amanda pointed to the girl and as she slowly nodded in agreeance with the mistake, she said "We have the wrong person."

"What?" Lee asked again not comprehending how they messed up. He used his free hand to shift her head so he could see her and said "Oh My God, we have the wrong person."

Amanda nodded again and said "I told you that already."

Lee glared at her and then heard the angry mob; who was waiting for their lunch; start screaming to leave her alone. It didn't seem to matter that Lee was holding a gun, they just wanted their food.

"Sorry folks, we were just practicing to make sure she would know what to do if someone tried to hold her up." Lee said to the crowd.

Under his breath, Lee said "Where is the girl who normally works here?"

"She quit on Saturday. She said that she had a new job and didn't have time to give a notice."

"Damn It" Lee said. "Do you know where the new job is?"

"No, sir I don't. Can you please put your gun away?"

Lee put the gun down, re-holstered it and then stepped out of the booth and headed to where Amanda was standing.

Amanda said "We are really sorry to have disturbed you. We will leave you alone now. Sorry."

The lady in the booth looked really mad but went back to her line of hungry customers.

"He was right here! I even talked to him. How did I not know it was him?" Lee said in frustration.

"You weren't expecting it to be him. Our minds are funny that way. Sometimes they see things that we want them to see that aren't really there and other times they don't' see things that are right in front of us. We'll get him Lee. Don't worry. He still has his meeting to go to tonight. You don't think that the girl will let him know that we are looking for him do you?"

Lee stopped walking and began running his hand through his hair. "I don't know. It didn't sound like she knew where he had gone but you never know. I sure hope she doesn't let him know."

"Lee? Are you going to arrest Rostov and Dirk tonight if they are there or do you need to wait until they try to steal the super computer?"

Lee sighed "I have to wait. I would love to arrest them tonight but I can't. I just want Rostov to show up so I can tail him and see where he is hiding."

"That sounds like a good plan."

"Yeah, plus I'm hoping to overhear what they are saying so I have a better idea what their plans are."

"What about the East Germans? Are you expecting they will be in attendance tonight too?"

"No, I don't think they would be welcomed especially since the Russians probably know that they are trying to kidnap Rostov. Amanda, maybe you shouldn't go tonight. I probably don't need any help. I'm just going to observe them."

"Lee, I need to be there. We're in this together, remember? Besides, I believe the East Germans think I'm Scarecrow still anyway, right?"

"Right?" Lee said hesitantly because he knew Amanda was going to throw some sort of logical thinking at him.

"Well then if they are watching us watch the Russians, then they would expect me to be there, right."

"Amanda!" Lee gave her a scorning look. How did she manage to twist this around all the time?

"Oh come on Lee. Don't cut me out of this now. I need to be there."

Lee sighed because he knew there was no sense arguing with her. If he didn't let her come along, she would likely find her way over there anyway and get into trouble. At least if she was with him, maybe he could limit the trouble she got into. "Okay, I give up. If you really want to come, then I'll pick you up at 8pm sharp."

"Sounds good." They had resumed walking and then Lee said "I think I should call Billy and let him know that Rostov isn't working there anymore." Lee had spotted a payphone and they walked over to it. As Lee was talking to Billy, Amanda noticed his body language changed and suddenly he exclaimed "Damn It!" As he hung up the phone, she asked "What's wrong?"

"Billy just got word that Professor Daly has been kidnapped."

"Why would they kidnap Professor Daly?"

"Apparently he is the top scientist behind the Super Computer. Billy took a closer look at that file that we found in Ivan's apartment on Daly and realized that we should have looked closer at the file when we first found it. After all, they created one for a reason so we should have looked more closely but none of us did. This man has headed up more projects for the US Government than any other scientist alive today. The information that he carries in his head would be invaluable to the Russians. They are going to dangle him as a way to get the Super Computer but in the end, they have no intentions of giving him up. He was probably Rostov's target from the beginning but Rostov hadn't figured out a way to get him out of the country so he just kept trying to steal anything that Daly created so they could try to reinvent it in Russia. Now that this is to be Rostov's last mission, he's going for broke and is going to attempt to get him out of the country and back to Russia."

Amanda had stood listening to Lee's rant. When he finished she didn't know how to respond. "Oh my Gosh Lee. How will he get him out of the US without anyone noticing?"

"I'm not sure but I have to figure it out before he does. Meanwhile the Germans intend to bring Rostov back to Germany and I'm sure they wouldn't mind the extra bonus of Daly too. What a mess this is all turning out to be."

"Well it seems more important than ever now that we hear what they know in this meeting." Amanda reminded Lee.

"Yes, you are right. Okay, let's get back to the agency so you can get home and spend time with your boys. I think we are in for a long night."

 **TBC**


	43. Chapter 43 - The Meeting

**Chapter 43 - The Meeting**

Lee arrived at Amanda's house just before 8pm. He knew that she was probably helping her boys with their homework before going with him to this meeting. He patiently waited and she didn't disappoint since she promptly came out her front door at 8pm.

As she got into the car, he asked her "Was your family suspicious of another late night out?"

"I told my Mother that I had a client who was out of town and needed me to go over and make sure her horse was taken care of."

"I thought you were allergic to horses, wasn't your mom suspicious about that?"

"No more than normal. I told her that I would be late because of the allergies and all that I would need to do to protect myself before being around the horse. I needed to tell her that I was taking care of an animal that would take me longer than an hour."

"Well good job, I guess. Let's go see what our friends are up to and see if any of them will be willing to shed some light on what their plans are." Lee put the car into gear and headed for Burrito World. He pulled up to the curb a few blocks from the Restaurant. As they sat waiting for the last customers to leave, they didn't see the man creeping up to their car. He had kept low in the shadows and they were completely oblivious to him being there. Suddenly he knocked on Lee's window and both Lee and Amanda jumped in surprise. They were both relieved to see it was Jerry. Lee rolled down the window and said "What are you doing out here?"

"I just wanted to let you know that the meeting is still on tonight. I have been told that this one is extremely important and very confidential so they have asked Paul to leave them alone for an hour and return at 10pm to lock up after them. I knew you wanted to hear what they were saying so I left the window on the side near where they sit at the tables opened a little bit to make it easier to hear."

"How do they usually arrive? Do they come through the front door or through a back entrance?"

"I believe they usually go right through the front door. They should be arriving at any time. Oh, here comes Paul so the last customer must have left." Just as he said that, several men emerged from the shadows and made their way into the building.

Lee said "Okay, well I need to get over there before the meeting begins. Jerry, I really suggest that you should get out of here. It isn't safe for you and I don't have time to watch out to make sure you are safe, okay?"

Amanda hated when Lee brushed off people who were trying to help without acknowledging that help so she butted in and said "What Mr. Stetson is trying to say is that he really appreciates the information you just gave him and have given to him and he is extremely appreciative of you thinking to open a window so he can hear better but that for your own safety, you should probably go."

Jerry smiled at Amanda and said "So you are not only a beautiful lady but also obviously the more tactful one of this team. Okay, okay, I'm going. Be careful." Jerry disappeared back into the shadows.

"Amanda, I want you to stay in the car." Lee said while ignoring the comments she had just made to Jerry.

"What good am I in the car?"

"You are out of the way and I don't have to watch out for you."

"How can I watch out for you while I'm in the car though?"

"Amanda! I'm just going to go listen in on the conversation. I won't be in any danger. I promise."

Amanda sighed. She knew it wasn't a good idea for him to go alone but he was insisting.

Lee was sure he had made his point so with one last warning "Stay in the car!", he headed to the building.

Lee crept up to the building and noticed the window that Jerry had left open. It was perfect and he realized that he should have thanked him for having the insight to do so. He would have to make up for that later. As he positioned himself underneath using a bush for cover, he realized that he had the perfect place to listen in.

"Adrik, I'm glad you made it."

"Why wouldn't I Rostov? This is my mission as much as it is yours. It is all our mission, right gentlemen?" Lee heard several voices agree with him

"Well you are not the one with a target on your back by both the US and the Germans, are you?"

"No, but if the agency ever found out that I'm actually working for the Russians, I would never see daylight again." Dirk said.

"Awww, so I'm supposed to feel sorry for you now? Come now, you are a big boy, you made the decision to stay with us. When you came to this country, you could have chosen to stay loyal to the Americans especially since you managed to bribe your way into such a seat of power but instead you stayed loyal to Russia."

"Are you suggesting that I shouldn't have?" Dirk asked.

"Don't put words in my mouth Comrade. I'm just saying that we all make our own choices."

"Well if I had defected to America, Russia would have sent you to take me out and you know it."

Rostov said "Yes, you are probably right. Can we get down to business now?"

"Sure, I understand that you were successful in the taking of Daly?"

"Yes, he is hidden away in a safe place. I am the only one who knows where he is. You can call it my security blanket."

"Is that really necessary?"

"I believe it is. I wouldn't want you for one to try to take credit for it. Plus haven't you heard, the Germans want me and Scarecrow. I don't blame them for wanting Scarecrow; she is a very beautiful woman."

"What?" Dirk asked "Scarecrow a woman? Who's giving you your information these days?"

"What do you mean? Is your Scarecrow not a woman? The word all over is that she has shown up in several places and saved the day for many victims. All my sources have confirmed her identity. How can they be wrong?"

Dirk began laughing "For such a smart man with so many sources, you really blew that one. No, Scarecrow is definitely not a woman. Scarecrow is a punk of a man who thinks he is hot looking and a hotshot. Women all flock to him and he's known as a Stud Muffin among them but he is definitely a man. Now his partner currently is a woman; is that who you mean? She is only a Civilian though and not very good at this business at all. In fact, your friend Zinoviev mistook her for Scarecrow also. I don't know how you can possibly mistake her for being an experienced operative when everything she has ever done right has been by accident."

Lee found himself getting really angry at Dirk's words. Lee might have criticized Amanda in the past but she had shown her worth many times now and for Dirk to put her down this way was insulting and he was so relieved she was not here to hear any of it. It took all he had not to bust in and have a few words with this jerk. He couldn't wait to put this man away. It was bad enough that he had to put up with him and his cocky attitude but Amanda didn't deserve this kind of treatment.

"Well who is Scarecrow then? Do you have a picture of him?" Rostov asked.

"Do you remember the man who freed you at the golf course? That's Scarecrow. The woman that was exchanged for you is his Civilian Partner. Can we now begin discussing the plan for tomorrow? Talking about Scarecrow always leaves such a sour taste in my mouth." Dirk said.

"Fine, what have you learned?" Rostov changed the subject.

"Well it seems that the President is not going to be there after all. They managed to talk him out of it for security reasons. There will be several Generals though along with someone from the Press and a whole slew of military personnel to make sure the computer is kept safe."

"I'm not worried. Do you know who is doing the demonstrations since I have Daly?"

"Yeah, some guy who goes by Commander Doug Bell. I guess he has been overseeing the project since the beginning. "

"Oh yes, I know of him. Will you be there?" Rostov asked Dirk

"I will not be able to attend without drawing suspicion to myself. However, Danny will be there."

"Ya, I will be there. No one has suspected me at all." Danny volunteered.

Lee found himself getting angry all over again when he realized that this was Danny Knotts. Lee had always considered him a good agent and a good friend. He wondered why he would get involved in all of this. He didn't have to wonder for long.

"Adrik I expect you to keep your promise to me. Once this mission is completed, I expect to be able to retire from the agency with full honors and be able to disappear off into the sunset with my wife and kids. That's the only reason I got involved in all of this. If anyone was to discover my part is this, I would be up on treason charges and so I'm taking a huge risk doing this."

"Shut up Danny. I promised you I would take care of you. God, I don't know why I ever asked you to be a part of all of this. All you have done right along is whine and act like you are the only one with your life and job on the line. I stand to lose a lot more than you. So just shut up." Dirk said in irritation.

"Why Adrik, I do believe the agency seems to be getting to you." Rostov said with a smile.

"Can we please stay focused Gentlemen? We are running out of time. My son will be back soon to lock this place up and I want us out of here before then."

"Well Danny, you know what to do then right? I need a diversion at some point in order to make sure I have the codes to get back into the computer room. I don't really care how you do it, just get it done, understood?" Rostov asked sternly.

"You got it boss. Meanwhile how are we stopping the Germans?" Danny asked.

"I'll take care of them." Dirk said.

"Don't double-cross me. I took care of Ivan; I wouldn't hesitate to take care of you too." Rostov said.

Lee realized that Rostov just admitted to killing Ivan. He had not really doubted it; but it made his heart run a little cold to know that it was true.

"Well I don't intend to double-cross you. I just want this done so I don't have to listen to you anymore. Okay are we finished here? I need to get home before my wife worries plus it is going to be a stressful day tomorrow."

"Adrik, you really should work on your stress levels." Rostov said. Lee could tell that this man loved to egg Dirk on. He wondered why they seemed to dislike each other so much.

"Just get out of here Rostov. Do your job tomorrow or else I will be the first to tell our boss that you have failed and that would give me great pleasure."

"I'm sure it would but there will be no failures. Good night Gentlemen." Rostov said as he could be heard walking to the front door and then exiting the building.

After he was gone, Lee heard Dirk say to Danny and the other men "Once he has the computer program, I think he needs to go swimming in the Potomac if you know what I mean. Are we in agreement Gentlemen?"

There was quiet Ya's all around the room. Lee couldn't believe his ears. So after all of this, they now intended to kill Rostov before the Germans could capture him and before he could take the glory for the stolen computer program. Tomorrow was certainly going to be an interesting day. Lee waited until all the men had exited the building and then he crept back to the car where he found Amanda anxiously waiting for him. He was impressed that she had stayed in the car.

"Thank you for staying in the car." Lee said as he got in.

"Well I could see you so I knew that you were okay. Did you learn anything?"

Lee had fought with himself for the past half hour as to how much he was going to tell Amanda. In the end he decided she needed to know some of it.

"They now realize that I'm Scarecrow, not you. The Germans likely still think you are the Scarecrow though."

"Oh my Gosh. How did they figure it out?" Amanda asked.

"Dirk told them. Dirk doesn't like Rostov. It sounds like he is jealous of him. After he steals the computer program tomorrow, Dirk intends to have Rostov killed."

"Wow, this really is a dirty business isn't it?"

"Well it can be. You are definitely seeing the evil side of it for sure."

"How do they plan to steal the computer program?" Amanda asked.

"I don't think they really know. The plan is to cause a diversion which will allow Rostov to steal the codes so he has access to the computer room later. Dirk doesn't intend to be there but I'm sure he intends to take the glory of obtaining the computer program."

"So how are we going to stop them?"

"I don't know. I'll think of something." Lee said.

He pulled the Porsche out of its spot and headed to Amanda's house. If he was going to come up with a plan, he better do it soon because time was definitely running out.

 **TBC**


	44. Chapter 44 - Just Wing It

**Chapter 44 - Just Wing It  
**

Morning came quickly for Amanda. As she made her way down the stairs, she heard her Mother talking to her boys.

"Jamie, don't slouch so much and Phillip it really isn't nice calling your brother wormbrain. Do you even know what that is?"

"Good Morning Mother. Phillip are you calling your brother names again? Sweetheart, I thought we talked about that."

"Yeah, I know Mom. I couldn't help it though. He's got it into this head that you aren't dating Dean anymore. I thought you were going to marry him Mom?"

"Oh Sweetie, there are no plans right now for Dean and I to get married. We have talked about it but I'm not ready yet."

"Do you love him Mom?" Jamie asked.

"I care about Dean a lot. I'm not sure how I feel about him. It's complicated. Do you want me to marry Dean?"

"Yeah, I guess so. I mean if that is what you want. I want you to be happy." Phillip said though he looked down as he was talking.

"Do you have to marry him Mom?" Jamie asked.

"Come here boys." Amanda led them to the sofa and sat down between the two of them.

"Now you listen to me. I am not marrying Dean right now. When and if the time comes that I think that it might happen; you both will be part of that decision. You both like Dean right?"

"Yeah, he's okay." Phillip said.

"He's not Dad." Jamie said quietly.

"I know he's not Dad. I also know that you aren't ready for this move yet either. It is a big step for us. I want you both to be happy for me when AND if I ever decide to marry again, okay?"

"Okay" they both said together.

"Well go get some breakfast. Your bus will be here soon."

Later after the boys left for school, Dotty said "Amanda? You know the boys might never accept a man other than their father into your life. You can't hold back your wants and desires for them."

"I know that Mother but I also have to include them in this decision. Those boys are the most important thing to me and they have to be happy or else I won't be."

"You are a good Mother Dear. Dean will make a great father."

Amanda shook her head and smiled. "I've got to go."

"Another client dear? How did the horse babysitting go?"

"Oh just fine. He's was quiet as a mouse and didn't fuss at all when I changed his diapers." Amanda ducked out of the house smiling.

"What? You changed a horse's diapers? AMANDA?!"

SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK

Lee had been up for awhile. He couldn't sleep since he knew this day was sure to be a challenge. When the clock hands finally got to 8am, he called Billy to fill him in on what he had learned the night before.

"So Rostov knows that Amanda isn't scarecrow now?" Billy asked.

"Yeah. Dirk told him. Is there any way to keep an eye on Dirk today? I doubt he intends to kill Rostov himself but it might be wise to keep surveillance on him in hopes of discovering what he has in mind."

"I'm on it. Lee be careful. Make sure you keep Mrs. King safe too."

"Yeah. I will do my best" Lee said as he hung up.

Lee finished getting dressed and then headed to his car. Just as he reached it, Amanda pulled up behind him. He walked to her car and said "I thought we were going to meet at the agency?"

"Lee, I thought it might be faster to meet you here. Do you want to take my car since yours stands out more?"

"Oh, like yours doesn't stand out?"

"You know what I mean. I'll let you drive."

"Okay" Lee agreed and Amanda pushed her body into the passenger seat so Lee could get in.

"So what is your hurry?" Lee asked.

"Oh, no hurry. Well not really. I just thought this would save time. Lee do you think the Germans will try to kidnap one of us today?"

Lee had started to drive the station wagon toward the freeway and realized that Amanda was nervous so he pulled over.

"Is that what this is about? You don't have anything to be nervous about. As long as you are with other people, they won't take the chance to try to kidnap you. Amanda, you don't have to come if you feel unsafe."

"No, I want to come. I just don't want to be shipped to East Germany."

"You won't be, I promise. Okay?" Lee smiled at her in hopes of relieving her fears.

"Okay. I trust you Lee. Did you come up with a plan?"

"Yup."

"Is it a good plan?"

"Sure. All my plans are always good." Lee said as he chuckled.

"What's our plan then?" Amanda asked.

"You'll see."

"Don't I need to know so I can be prepared?"

"Amanda, as soon as I need you to know something about the plan, I'll be sure to tell you. Okay?"

"You don't have a plan do you?"

"What makes you think that?"

"I can tell. You don't have a plan and you don't want to tell me that you don't have a plan. Oh My Gosh, I can't believe that we going to go do this without a plan."

"Amanda, we don't need a plan."

"We don't? I thought you were the one who said we needed a plan."

"I don't remember saying that."

"Well maybe you didn't say it but you always have a plan. I can't believe you don't have a plan."

"Amanda, I have a plan. I'm going to wing it."

"You are going to do what?"

"I'm going to wing it. Go with the flow."

"What? Lee, you aren't even making any sense."

"Amanda, just trust me. I'm the professional here. I know what I'm doing. Now let's just get there, okay?"

"Okay." Amanda said as Lee put the car back in drive and headed for the facility in Virginia. "Just wing it" The man had said. Inside Amanda knew this wasn't looking good.

 **TBC**


	45. Chapter 45 -Super Computer or Super Dud?

**Chapter 45 – You Know It's Bad When the President Calls**

Lee pulled the station wagon into the parking lot of the facility that would be testing the Super Computer. There were several military vehicles already parked near the entrance. A Soldier stood guard outside the door. Lee helped Amanda out of the car and they walked up to the door and Lee showed the young man his badge.

"Thank you Sir" He said as he opened the door for them. Lee and Amanda walked in and were greeted by another soldier who had been sent up to escort them down to the testing room. As they headed for the elevator Lee asked "Is everyone else already here?"

"I believe so sir. I was only sent to wait for you."

"Has there been any signs of anyone trying to be included who wasn't invited?"

"No Sir. It is mostly all military people."

He escorted them into a room that was full of tables. Each of the tables had 5 people sitting at them and they were all facing a large TV screen.

"Nice of you to show up" Commander Bell said to Lee as they walked in.

"I'm sorry. I was told this was at 9am. Did that time change?" Lee asked as he looked at his watch and found it was still only 8:30am.

One of the Generals got up and walked over to Lee and said "So you are the one they call Scarecrow? I'm General Peters. I know your uncle. He's a good man."

"Yeah, can we get down to business?" Lee said in a hurry as he tossed a glance at Amanda and couldn't tell if she had picked up on any of that conversation.

"Sure son, you and I will have to have coffee later on and discuss Clayton though."

Lee quickly nodded in agreement and said "Go ahead Commander Bell. I'm eager to see this test as I'm sure others are too."

Lee guided Amanda to a table that still had 2 seats and helped her sit down while sitting across from her.

"Well Gentlemen and Mrs. King of course, I want to thank you for coming down for our demonstration today. I'm please to finally be able to unveil this computer for you. We believe that we have created something that is incredible and invaluable. As you know, we constantly worry about Russia sending missiles our way. This computer will take care of that worry. We set it basically on auto pilot and it watches our skies and keeps us safe. Any time the computer sees an unknown object in the sky, it searches its databases to see what the object is. It has a whole database of dangerous objects and will dispatch a missile of its own to destroy anything it spots before they can do damage in the US. Other objects, it analyzes to determine the risk and it then makes a decision on what to do with the object. Now I know that seems a bit scary because a computer can't possibly know every object there is out there, but let me be the first to reassure you that this computer has been programmed to know and it would be a rarity for it to make a mistake." Commander Bell stopped for a few seconds so he could take a drink of water.

He then continued "Professor Daly headed up this project a long time ago and his extensive research and work helped to create an amazing resource for us that all other countries will want. Sadly Professor Daly was kidnapped from his home and could not attend this little exercise but I know he will be proud when he hears how impressed you all are. So before I get to our planned demonstration, does anyone have any questions?"

No one raised a hand so Commander Bell gestured for his man to turn on the TV Screen. "We have set up a few fake missiles to be shot off in different parts of the country so you can see how quickly the computer reacts and what it does. Gentleman, let me introduce you to the Super Computer."

Commander Bell nodded his head to one of his men who was on the phone and suddenly the screen showed a missile being launched in Arizona. Almost immediately they could see that another missile had been launched from Texas that overtook the Arizona missile and collided with it in mid air. There were ahhss in the room when it happened and all the military men began talking at once. Everyone was very excited. Lee sat back watching them and wondering if Rostov would make his move now or if he was waiting until later. Lee had checked over all the men and definitely none of them were Rostov. He wondered if any of them were working for him though. His thoughts were pulled back to the screen as a second missile was shot out of the sky and then a third one.

"As you can see gentlemen, no one has had to instruct the computer to do any of these attacks; it has simply done them on its own. Meanwhile it has not shot out any planes, parachutes, or any other airborne object that is harmless."

"Sir, we have a problem!" The man on the phone suddenly said but Commander Bell ignored him.

"All of this is perfectly safe to the average citizen as they go about their normal every day boring life."

"SIR! We have a problem."

"What? What is the problem Clifford?"

"The computer has just launched a missile and there is no target for it."

"What do you mean no target?"

"I mean that we didn't send off any other missiles."

"Can we get it on the screen?" Commander Bell asked.

Clifford did some quick typing on the computer and then the screen showed the missile as it continued on its unknown path. Suddenly in the distance, they could see something flying in the sky.

"What is that?" Commander Bell asked. The others watched in horror as the missile headed to the object.

Suddenly Amanda said "It's a kite. It's just a kite. Look, there's a string hanging off it. It's a kite in the shape of a space rocket."

Lee looked at Amanda in horror and asked "a kite?"

"Yes Lee, that's just a kite. We have to stop it."

Lee looked at Commander Bell and said "Stop the missile."

"I can't."

"What do you mean, you can't?"

"I can't. Once it locks on the target and is less than 20 miles from it, it can't be stopped."

"What? I asked you about that before and you led me to believe that it could be stopped."

"Yes, if you stop it in time. There isn't time to stop it now."

They all sat and watched in complete horror as the missile honed in on the huge kite and smashed into it. The self detonator on the missile went off and there was a huge explosion with pieces of shrapnel flying everywhere. There was no way to tell if anyone was hurt or not.

"Shut it off." Commander Bell yelled and the TV went black.

General Peters stood up and said "Well I think we have seen enough. I don't think the world is quite ready for a computer to take over things. Whoever heard of letting a computer have such an important job anyway? This was a complete waste of time. Come on men, we have to go do some damage control. Let's just hope that no one was killed in this stupidity. Good day Commander Bell."

The Military men all filed quickly out of the room behind the General.

"Wait Gentlemen, we can fix this. It needs to learn that just because it looks like a weapon; that it might not be one. Come on, we can fix this."

The Military men kept walking and soon had all exited the room.

Amanda was wringing her hands and said "Lee, I hope there wasn't a child hurt in that. Do you think there was? Is there anyway to find out?"

Lee was still glaring at Commander Bell. "Professor Daly wasn't ready for this to be shown today was he?"

Commander Bell hung his head and said "No, he wanted to put it off. We couldn't though. Everyone was expecting it today. Then he got kidnapped and wasn't here to stop us so we went ahead with the demonstration."

"Well we all saw how well that worked for you. Come on Amanda. Let's go find out if anyone was hurt." Lee guided Amanda out of the room. He knew he hadn't liked this man from the moment that he had tried to pick Amanda up. She certainly did seem to attract the wrong kind of men.

Lee helped Amanda into the car and they headed back to the agency. When they got there, they immediately went to Billy's office. Lee knocked and Billy waved for them to come in. He was on the phone and Lee could tell right away that he was hearing the news. "What do you mean it blew up a kite? A Kite? Really? I thought this thing was supposed to be tested and safe. Was anyone hurt? Well thank God for that. No, Lee just got here so I haven't had a chance to talk to him yet. Yes, Mr. President, we will get right on it. Thank you Sir."

Billy hung up the phone and said "Well that was the President who is a little upset that our Super Computer is a Super Dud. What the hell happened?"

"I don't know Billy. It took out the first targets fine and did its job and then it suddenly went off for no reason and headed for the child's kite."

"Sir, do we know if there was anyone hurt?" Amanda asked

"Thankfully no Amanda. It turns out that this was a kite that is used at a Science Museum and it was high enough in the sky that by the time the pieces fell to the ground, they didn't damage anyone. The people inside the Museum thought that it was just an experiment going on inside. The Museum has a section that is manned by the Military though and they called the President to let him know what had happened."

"Thank Goodness that no one was hurt." Amanda said.

"Yeah. All's well that ends well, right?" Lee said in a sarcastic voice.

"Oh Lee, we didn't catch Rostov. Do you think he knows that the computer is a Dud?"

"I'm sure Rostov is long gone by now. I wonder how I'll look in stripes."

"Stop talking like that Lee. It isn't over yet. Come on Man, you aren't a quitter." Billy lectured.

"That's right Lee. We are still going to catch him. I have an idea how we are going to do it too." Amanda said.

 **TBC**


	46. Chapter 46 - The Set Up

**Chapter 47 - The Set Up**

"What are you talking about Amanda?" Lee asked.

"No, I really have an idea. Hear me out, okay?"

"Amanda?!" Lee started. Billy interrupted and said "Lee, let the lady talk. Go ahead Mrs. King."

"Thank you Sir. Well the way I see it is that Rostov wasn't in the room today, right?"

"Correct."

"Lee, do you really think the Russians are going to care if the computer blows up a kid's kite? Won't they want this computer anyway and they can always try to fine tune it once it is back in Russia?"

Billy smiled and said "She might have something there. But how do we let him know that it is still available?"

"That's the easy part." Amanda said with a smile.

"It is? I'm not following you Amanda." Lee said as he swiped his hand through his hair.

"Sure, we just have to let Dirk know." Amanda said with a satisfied smile.

Lee stopped pacing and looked at Billy and then looked at Amanda and then looked back to Billy. "That might work." he finally said.

Billy had broken out into a huge smile and said "Mrs. King; that is brilliant. Now how do we let him know without it being too obvious?"

"I got it Billy. We'll have Francine call him and tell him that you and I are fighting and that he needs to get down here right away. When he hits the Bullpen, you and I stage an argument about the computer. Are you game?" Lee asked Billy.

"Sounds like fun. Count me in."

"What about me?" Amanda asked.

Lee had started to go get Francine but he turned around and asked "What about you?"

"What do you want me to do?"

Lee exchanged looks with Billy and said "I don't know. I guess you could pretend that you are trying to break up the fight."

"Why can't I join in on the fight? I was there too." Amanda asked.

"Amanda! You are a civilian. He won't fall for that. Just please pretend that you are trying to get us to stop. Okay?" Lee begged.

Amanda sighed and said "Okay but it was my idea."

Lee went out to the Bullpen and called Francine in. After bringing her up to date on the latest developments, she quickly rushed out to her desk to make the call to Dirk.

Lee and Billy waited for the signal from Francine and then began their act just as Dirk rounded the corner.

"Come on Billy. The thing is a piece of garbage. It was an embarrassment to everyone. How can they possibly consider keeping it?" Lee yelled.

"Lee; will you calm down? The whole place can hear you. Now it just so happens that they have sunk too much money into this computer so they can't just junk it. They have to put it into service."

"Why? So that next time it can wipe out a whole city block?" Lee countered.

Meanwhile Amanda had never met Dirk before but when he stepped into the office, she immediately walked up to him and said "Sir, please make them stop fighting with each other. This has been going on for 15 minutes now."

"ALRIGHT Gentlemen! What seems to be the problem here? Lee, your time is nearly up for catching Rostov so I'm not sure what you are doing hanging around Billy Melrose for."

"Dirk, you really are something." Lee began but Billy stopped him by saying "Dirk, Lee was just at a demonstration of the New Super Computer and it seems they had a bit of an accident. So he's a bit upset that they don't intend to scrap the whole project."

"They don't?" Dirk started to ask and then said "Well of course they don't. There are a lot of man hours and certainly a lot of taxpayer dollars tied up in that computer. Scarecrow, I suggest that you and umm, Mrs. King here get out in the field and concentrate on what you are supposed to be working on. Otherwise, in a couple of days, the city's finest prison is going to have a new tenant. Now Gentleman, if you don't mind, I have work to do." Dirk quickly exited the office.

As soon as he had left the Bullpen, Francine rushed into the office and told them that she had assigned Agent Abbott to tell him. Amanda's plan was working perfectly.

 **TBC**


	47. Chapter 47 - The Showdown

**Chapter 47 – The Showdown**

"I think Amanda and I will head back to the facility to see if Rostov might be hanging out there."

"That sounds like a good plan." Billy said.

Lee winked at Amanda and said "See, I told you I had a good plan all along."

"Oh please. What plan? I was the one who came up with the good plan." Amanda scolded him.

"You both have good plans! Now get out of my office. Thanks for your help Francine. Good job to all of you. Now let's go get Rostov!" Billy said.

Lee and Amanda hurried out to the garage to take Lee's car back to the facility. As they drove, Amanda noticed that Lee was making sideways looks at her. "What?" She finally asked.

"Nothing."

"No, really what? Why are you looking at me?"

"Amanda, it's just that sometimes you amaze me. This business is not a place for a civilian especially one who has 2 small boys at home." Amanda began to interrupt and he held up a hand and said "Now you listen to me Amanda King. We are going to have a more serious discussion after this case is over but for right now, I just wanted you to know that your plan was pretty good." Amanda started to argue with him when she realized he had given her a compliment. "It was? I mean, it was, wasn't it?" Amanda said in a proud voice. "Thank you Lee."

"Now let's just hope that the fox took the bait." They arrived at the facility and parked nearby in the parking lot among other cars so they could see the front of the building but where Lee's car wouldn't stick out too badly. Then they prepared to wait. They didn't have to wait very long as suddenly a tall blonde man came walking up in a janitor's outfit and headed for the front door. "That's him!" Lee said.

"Okay, now Amanda, listen to me. Wait in the car!"

"Oh come on Lee, again? I am no good if I'm waiting in the car. I need to be there to watch your tail."

"Amanda please? This could get dangerous. Just wait in the car, huh?"

Amanda let out a huge sigh and said "Okay, I'll wait in the car."

As Lee climbed out and headed for the door, he didn't hear her mumble "I didn't say for how long though."

Lee quickly arrived at the entrance to the building and stepped inside. There was a guard at the front desk but he sound asleep. Lee went over to see if he was alive and realized that he had probably been drugged. Lee made his way to the room where the computer was and as he started to go through the door he heard a gun's hammer click back. "Well look who we have here. Scarecrow is it? You know? Your lady partner makes such a prettier Scarecrow than you do. I guess you'll have to do though. I think this is my lucky day. Not only do I now have the Super Computer program to take back to my Homeland but I will have the world's famous Scarecrow too. My retirement will be a rich and rewarding as I am escalated in history as a hero for Russia."

"Come on Rostov. You know you can't sneak me out of the country."

"Why can't I? Living in America all these years, the one thing I have found is that you all get too cocky. You just always assume that everything should go your way."

"Oh and you Russians don't?" Lee said sarcastically.

"No, not as much. We make plans that work and stick with them. I suggested kidnapping you months ago but Dirk was against it. It seems that he doesn't like you very much."

"I got news for you pal, he doesn't like you very much either."

Rostov laughed and said "That's hardly news. The man has never liked me. He is highly jealous of me. It surprises me that he doesn't like you though. After all, you are one of the best in the agency and you make him look good most of the time. Why do you suppose he dislikes you so much?"

"The same reason I don't like you." Dirk said as he rounded the corner with another man. They both had semi automatic pistols pointed at Lee and Rostov. "Drop the gun Rostov."

"What are you doing Dirk? And Danny, you too? We are supposed to be friends."

Danny laughed and said "Come on man, you know that there are no friends in this business."

Lee realized that this was the Danny from the meeting the other night. He had just seen him at the demonstration earlier today but since Lee hadn't seen his face while he hid outside Burrito World, he had no idea what the man looked like. He watched as Rostov dropped his gun.

"So if the plan all along was for you to take the Super Computer for yourself, why did you bother drugging the guard for me? Why not just use my arrest as a diversion so you could get to the computer?" Rostov asked Danny.

Dirk laughed and said "You still haven't figured it out have you? You think I'm going to let you live? Oh no, I have no intentions of letting you live. But I want to make sure your death is listed as a failure. Now kick that gun over here, nice and easy."

"So you plan on taking all the glory for yourself? Rostov asked Dirk as he kicked the gun over to him. "Where does that leave you Danny?"

"Nice and rich. Once I kill you and Scarecrow, I get my payoff and I'm out of here."

Lee had noticed that Amanda had snuck into the hallway while they were talking. Damn it, he had told her to wait in the car. Why did that woman never listen to him? He had to give her credit though, she was obviously looking for something to cause a diversion. Just as she had decided on the fire extinguisher, there was loud crash and a huge man came barreling in holding a gun to her head. "Vell hello Mrs. Ach ! Scarecrov, at last ve finally meet." He said.

Danny and Dirk immediately aimed their guns at this new arrival and Dirk yelled "Who are you?"

"Vo am I? Vo are you? And vat are you doing vith Rosdoff? He is to accompany me pack to East Germany." The man replied.

"What? I'm not going to East Germany with you. Who are you and who sent you?" Rostov demanded.

"Mein name is Falken. Berhaps you haffe heard of me?" Falken said with much pride in his voice.

"No, I can't say that I have" Dirk and Rostov said together.

"ENOUGH of zis. Ach ! Don't make me shoot the Scarecrov."

"You are an idiot. That's not the Scarecrow." Dirk laughed as he spoke.

"It isn't? Zure it is. Ach ! Mein man Hans and CHoerg both vatched her houze for veeks. Ach ! Zis is the Scarecrov! Jawohl ! Vat are you trying to bull?"

"Oh so those two knuckleheads were under your rule, huh? Well they are locked up now and likely will never see the light of day. See your boy Joerg was so interested in shacking up with Mrs. King who you are holding by the way; that he never paid attention to the fact that she was just a boring ordinary housewife." Dirk said with a sneer. "Now why don't you throw your gun over here so we can all have a nice chat and then take a ride down by the river? I hear it is very scenic this time of the year."

Dirk had been so busy with Falken that he had not realized that Lee had inched his way up the hallway. In fact no one had noticed except Amanda. He then pulled his gun out of his holster shaking his head because no one had thought to disarm him and quickly formulated what the best plan was that would make it so Amanda stayed safe. Before he had his thoughts complete, Amanda screamed and all eyes turned on her and saw that she was pointing at the floor. "MOUSE!" She screamed. They all nervously looked to see where it was and it allowed Amanda time to duck into a nearby office. Lee began shooting down the hallway and managed to shoot both Falken and Danny which just left Dirk and Rostov. They all took cover and began exchanging fire.

"We take out Scarecrow and then fight it out among ourselves right?" Rostov asked Dirk.

"Sure. Help me take him down and then we'll talk" Dirk agreed.

They continued to exchange gun fire until suddenly the fire alarms went off. The noise was so loud that it was hurting their ears. Dirk and Rostov ran for the front door and right into the arms of a team of Agency men along with Billy Melrose.

"Well well, whatever do we have here? I'll take those." Billy said as he took both their guns. "Oh and I think you have something else that belongs to us." Billy said as he reached in and took the computer disks out of Rostov's shirt. "It will be nice for you to join us again at our friendly accommodations Rostov. We have missed you."

Lee and Amanda came out of the building at that point and Lee said "Well since you and Dirk are best buds, maybe we can even let you share a cell together. What do you say boys?"

Dirk glared at Lee. "You know, I never liked you Scarecrow."

"Wow, Dirk, such nasty words. Well don't worry, the feeling was always mutual." Lee said with a smirk.

"Men, get this scum out of my sight." Billy yelled at his agents.

"Great timing" Lee said as they shoved the two men to the waiting agency cars. "That was an excellent idea of setting off the fire alarms too." Lee said to Billy.

"I didn't set off the fire alarms." Billy said.

"No, I did Sir. I figured it was a good diversion. I remembered Lee talking once about creating good diversions and I thought if there was ever a great way to create a diversion it would be to confuse them with the loud noise of the fire alarm."

Lee looked down at Amanda and couldn't help but shake his head and smile. He really was going to miss working with her. Once again, she had done a good job but he wasn't about to tell her that. If she thought she was doing a good job, his chat with her would be a waste of time.

"I'll meet you both at the agency later for your debriefing."

"Oh Billy, there are two dead men inside. One of them is the big East German boss that wanted Amanda."

Billy gestured for his men to go get the bodies. He smiled at them both as he climbed into his car. "Great job both of you!"

"Thank you Sir." Amanda said.

"Yeah, We'll be there in awhile Billy."

"I know you will." Billy said as he drove away.

"Amanda, I thought I told you to wait in the car."

"You did."

"But you didn't"

"Sure I did."

"Then why were you inside the building."

"You didn't tell me how long to wait in the car and I didn't say I would wait in the car the whole time. I did wait in the car though." Amanda said as she headed for the Porsche.

Lee shook his head. She got him again. How did she always manage to do that?

 **TBC**

 **AN: Almost there, just the conclusion/tag left. I hope you enjoyed it. I wanted to give the ending to you as my Christmas gift. I should have the rest posted shortly.**


	48. Chapter 48 - Wrapping Things Up

**Chapter 48 - Wrapping Things Up**

Lee and Amanda were soon back at the agency and met with Billy for their debriefing. Lee explained how Rostov had been waiting for him when he arrived at the computer room and it turned out that Dirk and his henchman Danny were waiting for them both. Lee wasn't sure why Dirk and Rostov hated each other so much but they obviously did. It had to run deeper than just jealousy. Meanwhile, the East German portion of the story had come full circle as Falken had arrived and taken Amanda hostage while thinking she was Scarecrow. Since Dirk was having fun taunting the big man about the mistake, it gave Lee time to inch down the hallway. He then told Billy how he had taken out both Danny and Falken and was in the process of taking out Dirk and Rostov when the fire alarms interrupted him.

"Well the way you just told that, you would think I didn't do anything." Amanda stated.

"Well you didn't stay in the car."

"And if I had stayed in the car buster, you would probably be dead right now."

"Oh Amanda, I had a plan the whole time. You almost messed it up by being kidnapped by Falken."

Billy sat smiling while watching the two of them sparring for a few minutes and then finally broke it up. "Mrs. King, he's just teasing you. I'm sure Lee is very appreciative of everything you did to help with this case, aren't you Scarecrow?"

"Yeah, thanks." Lee mumbled. He was saved at that moment as Francine walked through the door. "Well we have some good news. We used some truth serum on both Rostov and Dirk and got them both to talk before they could block it out, we were able to get Rostov to tell us where Professor Daly is and we have agents on the way now to go pick him up. They both also told us why they hate each other so much."

"Oh and why is that?" Billy asked.

"Well it seems that Rostov was sent over to this country first because of Dirk. Dirk used to be a close friend of his, they went to school together. Dirk was offered the chance to come to America as a spy but wanted to help out his buddy who had been jobless for months. Rostov was supposed to get established and then bring Dirk over as his partner. Instead, he brought Ivan over. Dirk was told that they didn't need any operatives out in the field but they did want to crack a hole into the agency so they stuck him here. He had to deal with American Beaurecrats and us agency people while Rostov has always had all the glory. He was determined to make sure that Rostov did not succeed with this final mission so he would be a failure and Dirk would pick up the glory for saving the mission after Rostov was dead. Meanwhile, Dirk was supposed to be supplying Rostov with information and most of the time, he purposely gave him incorrect information to make things harder on him. Rostov had figured this out to be true and Dirk confirmed it."

"Wow, you people are really cutthroat aren't you?" Amanda asked.

Lee smiled and said "We only kill the people who don't wait in the car when they are told to."

"Give it a rest Scarecrow." Billy said.

Amanda ignored him and asked "So what will happen to all these men?"

Francine answered and said "They will be sent away to a maximum security prison for the rest of their lives."

"Oh my Gosh. What a horrible ending for them all."

"Well that's what happens when you are the bad guy Amanda. Good thing we are the good guys, huh?"

They all chuckled at that.

"Oh Lee, I do have a question for you." Billy said. "I have heard a rumor about an agent of mine using his power to convince two beat cops to arrest an ordinary citizen and claim he committed a crime. Is there any truth in that?" Billy winked at Amanda as he asked the question.

"Gee, I don't know. Hmmm, two officers arrested some slob for a crime he didn't do and now the cops want to blame an agent for it? That sounds harsh."

"Surely none of my agents would pull such a stunt because they would find themselves on desk duty for a month."

Amanda hid her smile behind some papers she was holding because she knew Billy was doing it for her sake.

"Yeah, Billy; are we done here? I have to go do some clean up work at my desk. Amanda thanks again for your help. Are you heading home?"

"Amanda and I have to discuss some things" Billy said.

Lee gave Billy a questioning look but Billy looked neutral and didn't let anything on. Lee walked out of his office with Francine as she gave Lee a questioning look as to what Billy would want to discuss with Amanda. Lee hoped this meant that Billy was going to work on convincing Amanda to quit the agency.

As they were leaving, Billy said "Oh and close my door behind you please."

Amanda wondered if she was in trouble. Mr. Melrose had never asked to talk to her privately before.

"Mrs. King, I just wanted to thank you again for all your help with Lee. I know he can be pigheaded at times and difficult to work with but he listens to you. You have a calming affect on him that I haven't ever seen before, not even with Eric, his past partner. You see Mrs. King, Lee has been a loner for a long time. He will have to tell you his private affairs when he is ready but trust me when I say that he doesn't really have any family, very few friends and most of the time he doesn't think that anyone cares about him. After Eric was killed, he shut down even more. He stopped caring about others and it made him reckless. He would jump into any situation and not worry about the consequences until it was too late. Today he once again showed that you have an affect on him that I've never seen before. He made sure you were safe. It isn't just today though, he keeps showing it. I want to ask you a question though if you don't mind."

"No go ahead Sir." Amanda said while trying to absorb what Mr. Melrose was confiding in her.

"Have you and Lee become involved at all?"

"Involved sir?"

"Yes, you know what I mean. Is there anything other than friendship between you?"

Amanda blushed and said "Sir, I have a boyfriend. I would never be involved with another man while I have a boyfriend. That goes against everything I believe in."

"That's what I thought but I had to ask. You understand?"

"Yes Sir. Sir; why are you telling me all of this?" Amanda asked.

"Amanda, Lee is getting uncomfortable."

"With me Sir?"

"Yes with you. He's starting to realize that his wall that he has so solidly constructed around himself has a small hole in it. Amanda King has created that hole. The longer you stick around, the bigger that hole is going to become. Lee is afraid of being hurt; he doesn't commit to a woman because he has been hurt by women, he doesn't want a partner because he lost his last one tragically, he is afraid of letting anyone in. Every time he does, he gets hurt. Do you understand?" Billy asked.

"I think so Sir. I just don't understand why you think that he cares about me."

"Amanda, do you know what he almost gave up by trading Rostov for you?"

"He said they would send him to prison."

"They would mark him with Treason, they would strip him of everything he has ever earned, and he would spend the rest of his life in a 5x5 cell. Can you imagine Lee trapped in a cell?"

"I think it is awful that they would do that after all he has done for this country. He gives his life every day and they would do that just because he saved my life."

"Yes, they would have. Lee knew it too when he took Rostov. I don't think he would have done that for anyone else. I'm not sure he would have even done it for Francine and they are like brother and sister. No, he cares about you Amanda in his own way. He just isn't ready to admit it yet. I'm not talking about a sexual caring. I'm talking about he is starting to care about you like any partner would care about their partner."

"I had no idea Sir."

"I know, that's why I wanted to talk to you. Now he has decided that he needs you to quit the agency. He's using your sons as his reason. He has convinced himself that that is the reason. But I know that the real reason is that he is scared of feeling again. You have opened a door that he has had firmly shut and nailed shut for a long time now. He is scared of feeling again. He is going to spend some time in the near future putting pressure on you to quit. I leave it up to you as to what you want to do Amanda but I don't want to lose you. It isn't often that I find someone who walks into the agency and has such a natural ability and such incredible natural instincts. You are an amazing woman, Amanda King and the agency is proud to have you here. Now I know you have been wanting to take some classes. I have to do this slowly so as to not alert upper management since you are only a civilian right now but I can send you home with tapes that you can listen in the car to so you can learn. Would you be interested?"

"Oh Sir, that would be really wonderful." Amanda gushed. "Sir, will Lee be mad if I stay? What do I say to him when he tries to convince me to leave the agency?"

"Well if I know Lee, he doesn't really want you to quit. So I think for now, you should agree with him to consider quitting and make him think that you plan to. I plan to give him a couple of days off since he never got his vacation so by the time there is another case for you two to work on, you can just pretend that you didn't think he was serious and tell him that you never agreed to quit. What do you say?"

"Sir, thank you. And thank you for taking such good care of Lee. He's like a son to you, isn't he?"

"Yes he is. I've known about the things that have happened in his past and I have watched him deal with tragedies since he came to work here. Lee puts up a good front but he hasn't really ever had a lot of happiness. I hope one day he will meet a nice girl who will be willing to put up with his quirks and he can be happy but for now, I can only try to keep him from self destructing. You understand don't you Mrs. King?"

"I think I do Mr. Melrose." Billy looked to make sure that Lee wasn't looking into the office and then handed Amanda a pile of cassette tapes. There are some good lessons in these tapes. I included one for how to do car surveillance, another one on how to create distractions which I think you have already mastered but I thought you might like to hear the agencies take on it. Let me know when you get through these and I'll get you some other ones, okay?"

"I will and thank you Sir." Amanda put them in her purse.

"You are welcome Mrs. King. Oh and try not to let Francine bother you too much. She really is a good person but she has fought hard to make her way up the ladder and she looks at you as someone who just got a free ride. The female agents usually have a much harder time than male agents so she is really just envious that you have been assigned to Lee even though you are not an agent. She'll come around though."

"Oh, I don't let Francine get to me Sir. Well not too much anyway." Amanda smiled.

"Amanda, go home and enjoy your family. I'll be in touch in a few days, okay?"

"Yes Sir. Thank you Sir."

Amanda got up and walked out of Billy's office. As soon as Lee saw her, he got up and quickly followed her out of the Bullpen.

"What did you two talk about for so long?" Lee asked.

"Oh, nothing really."

"Well nothing sure took a long time."

"I guess it is one of those Need to Know Situations." Amanda said with a smile.

Lee started to protest and then realized that she was teasing him.

"Okay, okay, you win. Hey I do have to apologize though." 

Amanda stopped walking and said "You apologize? Really, about what?"

Lee smiled and said "Well you told me not to save you anymore unless you asked to be saved. You didn't ask me to save you."

"No, because you didn't save me."

"What? Yes I did Amanda. I saved you."

"I don't see it that way. I saved you."

"Nonsense, if I hadn't shot Falken and Danny, they would have gone after you."

"Maybe, but we will never know that for sure, now will we?" Amanda smiled as she ducked into the elevator that would take her to the upper level. Lee chuckled as he got in behind her. They rode in silence not realizing that Mrs. Marston was watching them. She was so happy to hear that Lee had caught Rostov and would not be facing treason charges. Her favorite partners would be together again and she couldn't wait to hear them squabbling again as they arrived at work in the morning.

As Lee and Amanda left the building, Lee asked Amanda to join him for coffee. They walked to the corner cafe and took a seat in the back.

"Amanda, I do want to talk to you." The waitress had arrived and they both just ordered coffee.

"Oh, about what?"

"The agency. Amanda, all kidding aside, this job is very dangerous. You have been lucky so far and have managed to not get killed but one day I might not be there to save you. I don't know if I could live with that and knowing that you have 2 sons at home who's mother will never come home."

"Lee, you put yourself at risk ever day too." Amanda reminded him.

"I don't have anyone that cares if I come home though."

"Oh that's not true. Billy would care. Francine would care. I would care." Amanda said quietly.

"Yeah, well it isn't the same as what you have. This business is just no place for a single mother. Now I know you find it exciting and I thought if you were allowed to see the other side of it that it would convince you that you shouldn't be here but now I have to really be a little more forceful. Amanda, I want you to quit the agency. I can help you find a normal job. I have friends who can help me. This place is just not for you."

Normally Amanda would have argued with him but knowing what Billy had just told her, she realized that it was not the time. "Okay, Lee, let me think about it."

"Really?"

"Really. I'll think about it. Okay?"

"Okay, great!" Lee was all smiles now. It would have hurt her feelings if Billy hadn't done such a great job explaining things to her. Instead it just made her feel even more sorry for this man. He led everyone to believe that he had everything but without anyone to love you no matter what kind of love that was, no one is truly ever happy.

They drank their coffee and then Lee paid the bill and walked Amanda back to her car.

"Amanda, it has truly been fun working with you. Thanks for all your help. Now get back to your real, normal life. Please let me know if there is ever anything I can do for you, okay?"

"Okay Lee. Thanks. I'll see you around."

"Yeah" Lee said as he swiped his hand through his hair. He was so happy that she listened to him but at the same time, why did he feel so miserable?

He decided that he needed to go work out at the gym. He got into the Porsche and headed over there. As soon as he walked in, he saw Suzi. He walked over to her while smiling and said "Hi, Remember me?"

"Oh, the one who brings me on a date and then deserts me? How could I forget?" Suzi said bitterly.

"I'm sorry. Floyd was supposed to tell you that I had an emergency come up."

"Oh sure he did. He told me that another one of your lady friends was in trouble and you had to go."

"She's just someone I know. She was in trouble and I had to save her from what could have been a sexual assault. I'm sorry that I couldn't stay to tell you that. She really is just a friend though." Lee assured Suzi. "Do you forgive me?"

"I don't know. I guess I will have to think about it. Right now, I'm meeting a friend at a bar so I have to go. Maybe I'll see you in here another time." Suzi left and Lee doubted he would ever see her again. It was pretty much the story of his life. Everyone always left. He should be used to it by now. He turned his attention to the treadmill and began to pound away on it. A good, exhausting run was sure to help him block out the pain that he was feeling. Deep down, he knew that it had nothing to do with Suzi though.

SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK

Amanda had arrived home and sat in her car awhile looking at the cassettes that Billy Melrose had leant to her. She thought back about the conversation that they had about Lee. Some of it was making sense now. Amanda couldn't help but feel sad for him. She wondered what exactly had caused him so much pain and what had happened to his family. He never did talk about his mom or dad and she had never gotten a straight answer out of him about whether he had ever been married. He was a very intriguing man and she couldn't help but be drawn to him. The agency excited her but there was something about Lee Stetson that she just couldn't let go. He treated her badly at times but it did make sense. She had been around people before who put up walls and shut people out to avoid emotional pain. Her ex-husband was one of them. It didn't make them bad people. It did make her feel like she couldn't give up on him though. Other than Billy and Francine, it seemed that everyone had always given up on Lee Stetson. Well Amanda King was not about ready to yet. She just hoped he would forgive her once he found out that she wasn't going to quit the agency.

(close curtain)

And the story continues with Sudden Death

 **A/N: Wow, what a journey. I'm not sure if it is good or bad but when I accidentally deleted my story, it wasn't nearly as complex as I ended up making it. I have added at least 7 chapters and over 15,000 words to this story from the original version and created a whole more interesting ending which hopefully you enjoyed. I want to thank each of you who have patiently waited for me to recreate this. It was truly devastating to lose it but with the support of especially Cindy and Pam, I chugged on because I loved telling this adventure and I love that I got to be the first to share the rest of the Story about Rostov. There are so many great writers out there who have tackled many of the holes that were left missing but Rostov was a hole that I don't think was ever touched nor was Dirk. I had fun making Dirk an even bigger slimeball than he was in the show. I even kept them alive so I could take them out to play with Lee and Amanda again someday.**

 **Losing the story caused a delay that wasn't expected though and of course has set my timeline all wrong now as my Christmas and New Year's Eve stories won't be published until after the holidays but hopefully you will enjoy them anyway. Merry Christmas everyone and thanks for your support!**


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